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Justice denies report that prosecutions are ending

by Jacqueline Thomsen - 06/21/18 12:32 PM ET

The Justice Department is denying a report in The Washington Post quoting a top U.S. Customs and Border Patrol official saying the Trump administration will suspend prosecutions of migrant parents with children who have been apprehended at the border.

The Justice Department flatly denied that Trump is ending his “zero tolerance” policy shortly after the Post story was published, saying that the Post “never reached out” and that the report is “not accurate.”

{mosads}

“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,” Justice spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said.

The Washington Post never reached out to the Department. Their story is not accurate. 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.

— Sarah Isgur Flores (@SarahFloresDOJ) June 21, 2018

The Customs and Border Patrol official told the Post that the administration would suspend prosecutions until it had more space to hold people in custody.

“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,” the official told the Post.

He said that border patrol officials were instructed Wednesday night to stop sending immigrant parents with children to federal courthouses to face criminal charges.

And the official said that many migrant parents and children will likely be released from custody ahead of their hearings, citing ICE’s inability to hold more families in custody.

President Trump signed an executive order Wednesday to stop separating immigrant children from their parents at the border, but said the zero tolerance policy would continue.

“We’re going to have strong, very strong borders, but we’re going to keep the families together,” Trump said Wednesday.

Tags Donald Trump Donald Trump