Seventeen states sue Trump administration over family separations

Source: The Guardian

June 26, 2018 at 19:06

Undocumented immigrant families are released from detention at a bus depot in McAllen, Texas, on Monday. Photograph: Loren Elliott/Reuters

States including New York, California and Washington filed lawsuits accusing government of denying people their rights

Seventeen US states led by Democratic attorney generals are suing the Trump administration in an effort to force officials to reunite migrant families separated at the border.

In the latest setback for Donald Trump’s “zero-tolerance” immigration policy, the states, which include New York, California and Washington, filed lawsuits on Tuesday accusing the government of denying migrants their rights.

“The administration’s practice of separating families is cruel, plain and simple,” New Jersey attorney general Gurbir Grewal said in a statement. “Every day, it seems like the administration is issuing new, contradictory policies and relying on new, contradictory justifications. But we can’t forget: The lives of real people hang in the balance.”

Read More (...)