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U.S. NEWS Friday 29 June 2018

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US judge orders immediate release of detained Brazilian boy

By MARTHA IRVINE and MI- reunite more than 2,000 im- "This ... is a nightmare," she
CHAEL TARM migrant children with their said in an interview with
Associated Press families within 30 days, or The Associated Press on
CHICAGO (AP) — A fed- 14 days for those younger Wednesday.
eral judge in Chicago on than 5. Souza's attorneys For days and weeks now,
Thursday ordered the U.S. nonetheless moved for- some of the hundreds of
government to release a ward with an emergency parents separated from
9-year-old Brazilian boy hearing in their lawsuit their children at the Mexi-
who was separated from against the Trump adminis- can border by the Trump
his mother at the U.S.-Mexi- tration to demand her son administration have been
co border, saying their con- be immediately released. battling one of the world's
tinued separation "irrepara- In Washington, D.C., on most complex immigration
bly harms them both." Thursday, police arrested systems to find their young-
Judge Manish Shah mulled nearly 600 people after sters and get them back.
his decision for just a few hundreds of loudly chant- For many, it has been a lop-
hours before finding that ing women demonstrat- Lidia Karine Souza watches as one of her attorneys speaks sided battle, and a frustrat-
Lidia Karine Souza can ed inside a Senate office outside U.S. District Court in Chicago, Thursday, June 28, 2018. ing and heartbreaking one.
have custody of her son, building against Trump's Associated Press Most do not speak English.
Diogo, who has spent four immigration policy. Among Many know nothing about
weeks at a government- those arrested was Rep. tegrity with little to no ben- two or three days to file ad- their children's where-
contracted shelter in Chi- Pramila Jayapal, the Dem- efit to the government's in- ditional arguments on any abouts. And some say their
cago. Shah ordered that ocrat from Washington terests." constitutional issues raised calls to the government's
the child be released Thurs- state said on twitter. Souza has been allowed by the case because she 1-800 information hotline
day, but didn't specify a Meanwhile, Melania Trump to phone her son for just had a flight to catch in a have gone unanswered.
time. Souza's attorneys said spent time with children 20 minutes per week. She few hours, the mother's Huge logistical challenges
she would pick up her son at a complex in Phoenix has said he would beg lawyer balked. remain, and whether the
Thursday afternoon. where dozens of migrant her though tears to do "I appreciate that the gov- U.S. government can man-
The mother, who has ap- children separated from everything in her power ernment has flights," Britt age to clear away the red
plied for asylum, was re- their parents at the border to get him back to her. Miller told the judge. "But tape, confusion and seem-
leased from an immigrant are being held. The 27-year-old woman I have a 9-year-old in cus- ing lack of coordination
detention facility in Texas Souza's son has spent four searched for weeks to find tody who is not allowed to and make the deadline re-
on June 9 and is living with weeks at a government- Diogo after the two were see his mother. Every single mains to be seen.
relatives outside Boston. contracted shelter in Chi- separated at the border in hour that passes is a hard- Among the complicat-
"We are thrilled that Lidia cago, much of it alone in late May. When she was re- ship on her and her child." ing factors: Children have
Souza and her son will be a room, quarantined with leased, she filled out nearly Government attorney been sent to shelters all
reunited today as the result chickenpox. He spent his 40 pages of documents Craig Oswald told the over the United States,
of this afternoon's order," ninth birthday on Monday that U.S. officials told her judge that U.S. officials thousands of miles from
attorneys Jesse Bless and without his mom. were required to regain have been "raked over the the border. And perhaps
Britt Miller said in a written Shah wrote that he under- custody. coals ... before" for not be- hundreds of parents have
statement. "Judge Shah stood that volume of pa- Then they told her that the ing thorough about such already been deported
has vindicated the rule of perwork, filings and forms rules had changed and background checks, which from the U.S. without their
law and taken a definitive normally required before that she needed any fam- he said are meant to en- children.
step to allow Lidia's son to the government can re- ily members living with her sure a child's safety. Souza and her son were
finally be with her again. lease a child in its custody in the United States to be Souza was seeking safe- separated after she re-
We are hopeful that this are intended to ensure fingerprinted and still more ty by coming to the U.S., quested asylum, arguing
outcome will benefit other the child's well-being. But, documents. but it's not the safety she her life was in danger in her
families facing similar cir- he said, "the government's After a government attor- sought for herself and her native Brazil. "I came out
cumstances." interests in completing ney told Shah at Thursday's son. This was not the Ameri- of necessity," she told the
Shah, the son of immigrants certain procedures to be hearing that she may need can dream. AP.q
from India, took just four sure that (Souza's child) is
hours before posting his placed in a safe environ-
written ruling after a hear- ment and in managing the
ing Thursday morning. response to ongoing class
"Continued separation of litigation do not outweigh
... (the) nine year-old child, the family's interest in re-
and Souza," he wrote, "ir- uniting."
reparably harms them The fitness of the mother in
both." this case isn't questioned,
The decision came two he said, so dragging out
days after a different judge processing "only serves to
ordered the government to interfere in the family's in-