The latest ICE scandal related to immigrant minors

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) is the entity in charge of several border processes. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Supervise immigration detention centers around the country.
• Report official figures of the number of immigrants who try to cross the borders illegally and are detained by this entity.
• Take care of unaccompanied immigrant minors who cross the borders of the US without legal documentation.
• Review merchandise entering the country and avoid drug trafficking.

In a government effort to protect the health of the local population, some of the protocols that ICE must follow have been modified during the global Coronavirus pandemic.

In fact, in one of our most recent articles, we talked about one of the most controversial scandals regarding the immigration sector in the US.

Broadly speaking, ICE is taking immigrant children to hotels instead of juvenile centers or the facilities of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR).

Immigrant minors must wait several days or even weeks in these hotels before facing a deportation process.

The possible repercussions of taking children to hotels

ICE is booking hotel rooms through a private contractor and the repercussions of sending minors to hotels could be devastating.

The reason why the US law tries to protect children (even without legal documentation) is precisely because they are more exposed and more vulnerable to:

• Human trafficking.
• Domestic violence.
• Abuse.
• Kidnapping.

Therefore, this news has generated great controversy because nobody really knows the conditions in which minors are living in these hotels.

Hundreds of immigrant rights activists and advocates have stated that ICE does not allow anyone to monitor the conditions of immigrant children who remain in hotels. It is actually uncertain if the people who take care of them are child care specialist.

Motion Law keeps you up to date with the latest immigration news.

Hilton Hotels are against ICE policies during the health crisis

When the Hilton hotel chain (one of the most recognized) realized that ICE reservations were for immigrant minors who would be deported sooner or later, they canceled all reservations made by this entity.

Hilton representatives declared in an official statement: “This is not activity that we support or in any way want associated with our hotels (…) Our policy has always been that hotels should not be used as detention centers or for detaining individuals. We expect all Hilton properties to reject business that would use a hotel in this way”.

Therefore, ICE will not be able to continue reserving rooms at Hilton hotels to detain immigrant minors in the midst of the health crisis.

Protect your family’s future

We understand that your main priority will always be your family and that if you want to come to the US, it is precisely to build a promising future for them.

Do not expose your family’s future to uncertainty. It is best to follow the advice of specialists and avoid possible rejection of your immigration application.

If you have any questions about an immigration issue or relating to a case you may have currently in progress, then please don’t hesitate to contact us for a FREE Phone Consultation with one of our expert immigration attorneys.

Simply call Motion Law today at: (202) 918-1799.