The Justice Department had requested changes to a settlement that bars the detention of children for more than 20 days. But a judge dismissed the move as a "cynical attempt" to shift responsibility.
Of the 102 young children in custody, the Justice Department says at least 54 will return to their parents by Tuesday as ordered by a court. But a judge still voiced optimism about "real progress."
Now that President Trump no longer can separate migrant families detained at the border, his administration is preparing to lock them up together — an arrangement with many critics and legal limits.
The judge blocked a state agency from licensing the facility inside a private detention facility for undocumented mothers and children who have crossed the Texas-Mexico border.
A court ordered the release of women and children held in immigrant detention centers in favor of electronic monitoring. The GEO Group operates both. Advocates say that's a conflict of interest.
