(NewsNation) — Hundreds of thousands of migrant children who entered the United States without an adult don’t have immigration court dates and their whereabouts may be unknown, according to a new report.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) hasn’t kept track of all the unaccompanied migrant children under its watch, putting the minors at greater risk for trafficking and exploitation. The issue is delaying or preventing the deportation process in some cases, according to a report from the DHS Inspector General.
An ongoing audit showed that ICE transferred more than 448,000 unaccompanied minors to HHS between 2019 and 2023. ICE, however, couldn’t account for the whereabouts of all the children who were released by HHS and weren’t scheduled for immigration court.
More than 32,000 unaccompanied minors failed to appear for their immigration court hearings between 2019 and 2023. ICE also didn’t serve notices to appear in court to each child after they were released from HHS custody when removal proceedings were appropriate. As of May 2024, ICE hadn’t served such notices to more than 291,000 unaccompanied migrant children, according to the report.
ICE Enforcement and Removal officers (EROs) at just one of eight field offices said they attempted to locate the minors, according to the report. Additionally, ICE ERO doesn’t have a formal policy or process to follow up with minors who didn’t appear in court and limited oversight is provided to those responsibilities.
“ICE must take immediate action to ensure the safety of UCs residing in the United States,” Inspector General Joseph Cuffari wrote. “Based on our audit work and according to ICE officials, (unaccompanied children) who do not appear for court are considered at higher risk for trafficking, exploitation, or forced labor.”