Washington, DC — The Trump Administration has resumed detaining migrant families at the Karnes County, Texas detention facility and plans to expand the practice to a second facility in Dilley, Texas. The move has drawn fierce criticism from the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), which denounced the policy as cruel and harmful.
AILA President Kelli Stump condemned the decision, stating, “The Administration has failed to provide any justifiable reason for restarting this abhorrent practice. Detaining families inflicts lasting trauma on children and parents alike, and history has shown that these facilities are rife with abuse and unsafe conditions.”
Stump cited past investigations in which AILA attorneys documented sexual assaults by guards, medical neglect, and psychological harm to detained families. “Medical experts and government reports have repeatedly confirmed the devastating effects of family detention,” she added. “We urge the President to abandon this inhumane policy.”
AILA Executive Director Ben Johnson echoed these concerns, emphasizing that many detained families have deep roots in the U.S., including jobs and community ties. “Hundreds of our members have worked tirelessly to assist families subjected to these unsafe conditions,” Johnson said. “Instead of incarcerating them, we need a fair and functional immigration system that upholds both security and humanity.”
Johnson called for comprehensive reform, including legal pathways for long-term residents and alternatives to detention that ensure compliance with immigration laws without resorting to incarceration. “Americans want a system that is orderly, effective, and just,” he said. “Locking up families is neither a solution nor a reflection of our values.”
The administration has yet to respond to AILA’s demands. Meanwhile, advocates warn that reviving family detention will repeat past failures, leaving vulnerable migrants at risk while doing little to address broader immigration challenges.
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