Lawmakers demand answers over 8-year-old Haitian boy detained by ICE in San Diego

An 8-year-old Haitian boy, a third grader at Fay Elementary School in San Diego, California, was taken into federal custody on Thursday, November 5, after attending a routine appointment with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with his uncle, ABC News reported.

The boy had been living with his uncle since his father was deported to Mexico last year. He had lost Temporary Protected Status (TPS) earlier this year, after the Supreme Court allowed the government to end that protection for Haitians. His uncle took him to the appointment because he did not want to break the law, according to the San Diego school district.

An ICE spokesperson told ABC News that the uncle could not establish legal guardianship of the boy, so agents classified him as an unaccompanied minor under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 and transferred him to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). The agency said it acted "out of an abundance of caution and to ensure the child's safety" and did not accuse the uncle of abuse or any wrongdoing.

On Tuesday, six Democratic lawmakers — including Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff and Representatives Juan Vargas and Sara Jacobs — sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. asking what steps are being taken to reunite the boy with his family.

Advocate Guerline Jozef, of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, said the family was not given the opportunity to formalize legal guardianship. The school district confirmed that the uncle is listed in its records as the boy's authorized caregiver.

Photo: ABC News

Source: KTBB / ABC News