The Department of Justice intends to appeal the injunction laid down by a federal judge that barred immigrant families from being separated after illegally entering the US. Notice of appeal was filed with the US Circuit Court of Appeals by the administration on Friday, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Although the government intends to continue reuniting immigrant families previously separated as a result of the now-scrapped ‘zero-tolerance’ policy, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Scott Stewart, told a Friday court hearing that there are concerns over the application and scope of the injunction. US District Judge, Dana Sabraw, who was responsible for issuing the injunction, back in June, in cases that were against the best interests of a child and who set a timetable for the reunification of families, presided over the hearing.
Over 1,900 undocumented immigrant minors have been reunited with their parents since reunification was ordered by Sabraw, with a further 200 either having turned 18 or been placed with sponsors. The parents of a further 343 minors already deported from the US are being located by non-profit organizations and immigration lawyers.
The Union-Tribune says that the current legal consensus allows detained immigrant parents to make their own decision on whether to keep their children with them in detention or have them placed in youth shelters until a possible spot can be found for them with sponsors.