- A judge blocked the deportation of unaccompanied migrant children to Guatemala.
- The ruling followed a complaint by the National Immigration Law Center on Sunday.
- Judge Sooknanan ordered a 14-day halt, citing potential legal violations and harm.
WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Sunday issued a restraining order blocking the Trump administration from deporting unaccompanied migrant children in federal custody to Guatemala after lawyers said it would violate U.S. laws and deportations appeared imminent.
The ruling followed a complaint filed in the early morning by the National Immigration Law Center, a pro-immigrant advocacy group, on behalf of 10 children ages 10-17.
Washington, D.C.-based District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan ordered the administration to halt the deportations for 14 days and called for an urgent midday hearing, saying it appeared the children were in the process of being removed from the country.
President Donald Trump's administration struck an agreement with Guatemala that would allow unaccompanied children to be sent back to the country and planned to start deportations this weekend, one current and two former U.S. officials told Reuters. The plans were first reported by CNN on Friday.
Trump, a Republican, kicked off a wide-ranging immigration crackdown after returning to the White House in January.
Migrant children who arrive at U.S. borders without a parent or guardian are classified as unaccompanied and sent to federal government-run shelters until they can be placed with a family member or foster home, a process outlined in federal law.
Melissa Johnston, director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement's program for unaccompanied children, sent an email to staff on Thursday ordering no Guatemalan children in federal custody to be released in the U.S. except for those sponsored by parents or legal guardians in the U.S., according to a copy reviewed by Reuters and one of the former officials.
In a legal complaint filed on Sunday, the National Immigration Law Center and Young Center for Immigrant Children's Rights said the deportations would be a "clear violation of the unambiguous protections that Congress has provided them as vulnerable children."
"Defendants are imminently planning to illegally transfer plaintiffs to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody to put them on flights to Guatemala, where they may face abuse, neglect, persecution, or even torture, against their best interests," the complaint read.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, ICE's parent agency, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Guatemala's foreign ministry declined to comment.
After blocking the deportations of the 10 plaintiffs on an emergency basis, Sooknanan extended her order to cover all Guatemalan children under the care of the U.S. Health and Human Services Department as of 11:02 p.m. MDT.
The plaintiffs said in a court filing that hundreds of Guatemalan children were in government care and could face imminent deportation to Guatemala under the Trump administration's new program, which had not been disclosed publicly.
Sooknanan, who was appointed by Trump's Democratic predecessor Joe Biden, had initially scheduled a hearing for 3 p.m. ET on Sunday but moved it earlier, saying it appeared the deportations were in progress.
Contributing: Sofia Menchu
