FIRST ON FOX: A federal timeline provided by officials overseeing unaccompanied migrant children challenges reports that a 1-year-old boy was left to navigate immigration court without counsel, showing that legal service providers intervened to secure representation following an initial hearing. Addressing media reports highlighting toddlers appearing before immigration judges, Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) Acting Director Angie Salazar and Senior Advisor John Fabricatori pushed back on headlines alleging systemic gaps in child legal representation, arguing that contractor failures and lack of invoice oversight created the initial court lapses. "We don't have this big movement where we have a bunch of 1-year-olds who are going to court," Fabricatori told Fox News Digital.
SEX CRIMINALS, GANG MEMBERS ABUSED CHILD IMMIGRATION PROGRAM TO ENTER US, DHS REVEALS According to ORR timeline records obtained by Fox News Digital, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers first encountered the 1-year-old boy and his 17-year-old mother near Naco, Arizona, on June 25. The child was accompanied by his mother at all court proceedings.
The critical gap occurred in July under the agency's former contractor, the Acacia Center for Justice, records show. On July 1, Acacia completed legal orientation and consultation for the mother and child, but failed to file an E28 notice of appearance before the immigration court. Consequently, during the child's first scheduled court hearing on July 8, no attorney was present — not even as a friend of the court — despite Acacia holding an active federal legal services contract at the time.
The federal legal services contract with Acacia officially ended July 31. FORMER USCIS OFFICIAL, ACCOMPLICE CHARGED IN ALLEGED $960K CITIZENSHIP BRIBERY SCHEME Following the end of the Acacia contract, the agency transitioned legal service oversight to the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI), which officially initiated legal services Aug. 5.
During an Aug. 7 appearance, the mother and child were granted additional time to obtain counsel, while USCRI representatives attended subsequent hearings on Aug. 17 and Aug. 28 as a friend of the court. On Aug. 31, a motion was filed by the friend of the court and mother requesting court-appointed counsel at government expense, which was later denied by the immigration judge. Progress continued into September as child advocates were officially appointed on Sept. 23, and USCRI filed a formal E28 notice of appearance on Sept. 25 to become the attorney of record.
On Sept. 29, USCRI officially represented both mother and child in immigration court. The judge subsequently granted a continuance on Oct. 2, leading into a follow-up hearing scheduled for Friday. Officials explained that the July breakdowns highlighted the core reason the administration terminated Acacia's multimillion-dollar contract, which was awarded under the Biden administration in November 2023.
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