A group of Democratic lawmakers is seeking information from the Trump administration after an 8-year-old Haitian boy was taken into government custody last week.
In a letter to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Tuesday, six Democratic lawmakers asked what steps are being taken to reunite the child with his family.
“Video footage appears to show the use of restraints on a child who seemed to pose no threat to those around him, raising serious questions about the handling of this incident,” the lawmakers wrote. “We express concerns about the basis for this action and the harm it may cause a young child who appeared for his required hearing.”
The 8-year-old, who lost Temporary Protected Status earlier this year as part of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, was taken into federal custody during an immigration check-in last week, according to local advocates and school officials.
The third grader, who attends Fay Elementary School in San Diego, was detained alone after attending an Immigration and Customs Enforcement appointment with his uncle on Thursday.
Advocates and school officials previously said the boy had been living with his uncle and cousins after his father was deported to Mexico last year.
“They did not give the father the opportunity or chance to actually put in place legal guardianship for the kid,” said Guerline Jozef, the executive director of the nonprofit Haitian Bridge Alliance.
A spokesperson for ICE told ABC News that agents acted under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act because the uncle could not establish legal guardianship.
“Out of an abundance of caution and to ensure the child’s safety, ICE determined it was best to remove the child from the household and place him in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement,” the spokesperson said.
Jozef called the detention “an excuse for [ICE] to remove the child and potentially put him in deportation proceedings.”
“The effects of this action extend far beyond one child and his family,” the lawmakers said in their letter.
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