Children face higher threat of US deportation as legal support deal expires

Advocates warn expiring contract could leave 24,000 children without legal representation, increasing risk of expulsion.Immigration advocates have warned that children who entered the United States without documentation or a legal guardian could soon lose their legal representation.That could lead to higher rates of Deportation as a federal contract providing the service expired on Friday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Nine deaths tied to Trump’s Immigration enforcement operations in USlist 2 of 3ICE kills 26-year-old in Maine: What happened, and who else has ICE killed?list 3 of 3Trump urges ICE to keep using traffic stops after deadly incidentsend of list“We have no understanding of what’s going to happen to those children come next week,” Melissa Lopez, the executive director of Estrella El Paso, said during a news conference earlier this week.“We don’t know if they’re going to have legal representation. The government as of yet has not identified who will take over this representation,” Lopez said.The expiring contract paid about 100 legal groups across the country to provide legal services to about 24,000 unaccompanied minors.The contract allowed the groups to enter government-funded shelters as part of their representation. It was unclear what would happen after the contract expires, or if they would still be allowed to access their young clients.The administration of US President Donald Trump has not said why it was allowing the contract to expire. The Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the care of unaccompanied children, did not reply to a request for comment from The Associated Press on what their policy would be going forward.The change comes as the Trump administration has pursued a mass Deportation campaign, predicated, in part, on speeding up court processes to increase expulsions.The organisations that spoke at the news conference this week also charged that the Trump administration has been withholding payments even before the contract’s expiration, while simultaneously demanding detailed information about their clients. The providers said they cannot ethically provide the information.