U.S. President Donald Trump departs at the end of a rally with supporters in Duluth, Minnesota, U.S. June 20, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
June 21, 2018
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Trump administration will stop prosecuting migrant parents who cross the border illegally with children until immigration authorities have the resources that would allow them to be held in custody, the Washington Post reported on Thursday.
“We’re suspending prosecutions of adults who are members of family units until ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) can accelerate resource capability to allow us to maintain custody,” an unnamed official told the newspaper.
A Justice Department spokeswoman said the report was inaccurate.
“There has been no change to the department’s zero-tolerance policy to prosecute adults who cross our border illegally instead of claiming asylum at any port of entry at the border,” spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flors told Reuters.
(Reporting by Tim Ahmann; Editing by Mohammad Zargham and Jeffrey Benkoe)
