An ICE child detention incident in San Diego has sparked intense controversy after an 8-year-old elementary school student was taken into federal custody and separated from his family during a routine immigration appointment.
According to NBC News on the 10th, the third-grade male student from Haiti, who attends Fay Elementary School in San Diego’s City Heights neighborhood, appeared at the downtown ICE office on the 4th before being handed over to federal authorities.
Footage captured at the scene shows three armed federal agents escorting the boy through a hallway toward an elevator.
The boy had been living with his uncle and cousins since his father was deported to Mexico last year. However, he received a summons from immigration authorities following the expiration of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) previously granted to Haitian nationals.
According to the San Diego Unified School District, the uncle brought the boy to the ICE office to fulfill legal obligations but was separated from his nephew on-site.
The school district sent letters to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), expressing deep concern that the action threatens the child’s safety and right to education.
Conversely, the Department of Homeland Security explained that the man accompanying the boy failed to prove legal guardianship, prompting the intervention for child welfare reasons. Authorities classified the boy as an unaccompanied minor and placed him under the care of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR).
However, the family and school officials are pushing back, stating they cannot even confirm the boy’s exact whereabouts. District officials raised the possibility that the boy might be in the Los Angeles area, but his specific shelter location remains unconfirmed.
This incident occurred following the termination of TPS for Haitian immigrants. TPS is a program that allows foreign nationals to temporarily stay in the U.S. if returning to their home countries is unsafe due to natural disasters or civil war.
California politicians, including federal Representative Juan Vargas, are urging the boy’s release and family reunification. U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff, among others, have demanded that the federal government disclose the child’s location and a plan for family reunification.
