Criticism of Contract Awarded to Firm for Assisting Unaccompanied Immigrant Children
· Telemundo McAllen (KTLM)
The Trump administration awarded a $150 million contract for legal assistance to unaccompanied immigrant children to a small Texas firm with government ties but little experience in immigration law. As a result, many legal advisory groups that have long represented these minors warned on Wednesday that the move could leave immigrant children vulnerable to deportation. The contract awarded to Burke Law Group, a Houston-based firm, comes as the federal government intensifies its mass deportation campaign nationwide, and a week after it allowed a major contract with a network of legal groups working with immigrant children to expire. Providers have increasingly expressed concern that vulnerable minors will lack legal assistance from experienced professionals at a time when the government has ramped up deportation efforts. Michael Lukens, director of Amica Center, called it “disturbing and surprising” that the government awarded the contract to the Texas firm. “It’s really a harbinger of a situation where children will not have meaningful due process or a real opportunity to be heard in court. We cannot put just any firm in charge of caring for children,” Lukens emphasized. The groups noted that the contract, announced on Tuesday, only applies to minors already housed in government-run shelters, and that the government would need to award another new contract to cover services for migrant children living outside the shelter system. Lukens indicated that there are currently about 1,800 minors in shelters and around another 22,000 living with sponsors or relatives. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which oversees the agency responsible for the care of unaccompanied migrant children, has not yet responded to requests for comments. The Trump administration announced late Tuesday the hiring of the firm to provide legal services to unaccompanied migrant minors. The agreement takes effect on August 15 and lasts for one year. Only two of the 25 attorneys listed on the firm’s website Wednesday morning have relevant experience in immigration law, according to their biographies. Most of the firm’s attorneys are corporate lawyers with ties to conservative causes and Trump. The firm’s founder, Marcella Burke, was an attorney for the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Interior during Trump’s first term. The firm also includes Justin Shubow, a key advocate for Trump’s efforts to ensure federal buildings adhere to classical and traditional architectural styles, who was appointed by Trump to lead the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts. Prominent conservative scholar Ilya Shapiro is listed as “lead counsel.” The firm and its founder have not yet responded to requests for comments. The notice indicates that the Burke contract is a “cooperative sole source agreement,” meaning the government chose the firm without a competitive bidding process. No justification was provided for bypassing standard bidding rules. Migrant children traveling without an adult are considered particularly vulnerable due to their age and are often placed under the care of the federal government. They have various protections once they arrive in the country, including the 2008 Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, which requires the government to make legal representation available to minors undergoing deportation proceedings. Until recently, such representation was handled by a network of nearly 100 legal assistance providers nationwide. Legal assistance providers enter shelters and educate minors about their rights, and they can represent them directly in court proceedings. However, that contract expired on Friday, and as of Tuesday night, it was unclear whether a new contract would be established or who would perform the work. In addition to the contractual uncertainty, legal assistance providers claim they have faced difficulties getting reimbursed for work they have already done since last November. They assert that the government is requesting detailed information about their clients, which they say they cannot provide for ethical reasons.
AI summary · Source: Telemundo McAllen (KTLM) →
