Immigrants sued the U.S. government over conditions at a federal prison in California used to house detainees since the Trump administration sought to toughen enforcement on the U.S.-Mexico border.
The lawsuit filed in federal court in Riverside says harsh prison conditions at a medium-security facility in Victorville, California, are too restrictive for detainees awaiting their immigration court hearings, many who are seeking asylum. It also alleges they have been deprived of religious rights by being denied access to a Bible and use of a Sikh turban.
“As a result of the unconstitutional treatment of these civil detainees, many have expressed a desire to be returned, immediately, to their countries of origin because they would rather face the dangers back home than be imprisoned in these abysmal conditions,” according to the lawsuit, which alleges inadequate medical care and food, and seeks to have detainees removed from the prison.
Court Strikes Down Trump Push to Cut “Sanctuary City” FundsA divided U.S. appeals court struck down a key part of President Donald Trump’s contentious effort to crack down on cities and states that limit cooperation with immigration officials, saying an executive order threatening to cut funding for “sanctuary cities” was unconstitutional.
In a 2-1 decision, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with a lower court that the order exceeded the president’s authority. Congress alone controls spending under the U.S. Constitution, and presidents do not have the power to withhold funding it approves to pursue their policy goals, the court majority said.
Worker at Child Immigration Facility Molested Teen
A worker at a nonprofit organization that houses immigrant children separated from their parents at the border has been booked on suspicion of molesting a 14-year-old girl at its one of its facilities in Phoenix.
Police say 32-year-old Fernando Magaz Negrete kissed and fondled the girl in her bedroom at the facility on June 27 in an encounter witnessed by the girl’s 16-year-old roommate. It wasn’t immediately known if he has an attorney.
Southwest Key, which operates the facility, declined to say whether the 14-year-old girl was an immigrant who was separated from her parents at the border.
