SAN DIEGO (AP) – A judge on Friday refused to grant the Trump administration a blanket extension of the deadline to reunite children separated from their parents at the border, instead acknowledging that more time may be justified only in specific cases.
The administration said it needed more time to reunite 101 children under 5 years old to ensure the children’s safety and to confirm their parental relationships.
“There’s always going to be tension between a fast release and a safe release,” said Sarah Fabian, a Justice Department attorney.
U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw ordered the administration to share a list of the 101 children with the American Civil Liberties Union, which successfully sued to force the reunions, by Saturday afternoon. The two sides will try to determine over the weekend which cases merit a delay in an effort to present a unified front in court on Monday morning.
“The government must reunite them,” the judge said. “It must comply with the time frame unless there is an articulable reason.”