Obama-Appointed Judge Says Monitor Needed for ICE Family Detention Center
Some children are being held for over a month in sub-standard conditions, including in Dilley, Texas, the judge said.
A U.S. District Judge appointed by former President Barack Obama has ruled that the Trump administration must pay for independent monitoring of conditions at a Dilley, Texas family detention center housing immigrant children. Chief Judge Dolly M. Gee ordered that oversight be implemented due to the administration's history of noncompliance with the Flores Settlement Agreement, which sets national standards for the detention and treatment of immigrant children in federal custody.
Over the past year, Judge Gee and her team have conducted 12 site visits to the Dilley facility and spoken with more than 175 families, documenting numerous concerns, including children becoming seriously ill, insufficient sleep, inadequate nutrition, and emotional and developmental regressions. Former Los Angeles City Attorney Andrea Sheridan Ordin and pediatrician Dr. Paul Wise have been appointed as the Special Master and Independent Monitor, respectively, to oversee the facility and report quarterly to the court.
The ruling comes in response to concerns raised about the administration's treatment of immigrant children in detention, particularly at the Dilley facility. The Flores Settlement Agreement, a 1997 accord, mandates that minors be held in safe and sanitary facilities and be released without unnecessary delay. The agreement has been a central issue in immigration policy debates during both the first and second Trump administrations.
The judge emphasized that the order is not a contempt finding or punishment against the government but rather a response to ongoing concerns about compliance with existing court orders.
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