Prosecutors decline to press charges after migrant children seen pushed, dragged at shelter

Arizona prosecutors determined that no criminal charges will be filed in a case involving migrant children being pushed and dragged on video at a shelter.

The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office concluded Friday that there is not enough evidence to bring criminal charges in the three incidents at a Southwest Key shelter, The Arizona Republic reported.

County Attorney Bill Montgomery said further investigation led his office to determine “there is no reasonable likelihood of proving beyond a reasonable doubt the required elements of a felony offense.”

{mosads}The Hill has reached out to Montgomery’s office for further comment.

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office in December turned over the results of its investigation into “several allegations of child abuse and assault” to Montgomery’s office.

The incidents reportedly occurred on Sept. 14, 17 and 21 at Hacienda del Sol, a shelter that closed in October.

Video from the since-shuttered migrant shelter showed children being pushed and dragged by staffers.

One video reported by the Republic shows a male staffer dragging and pulling a boy into a room, then slapping him and pushing him against a wall. The child seems to retaliate, then the staffer leaves the room.

In another video, a female staffer physically drags a child through a room when the child refuses to move.

The shelter was previously operated by Southwest Key Program, the nation’s largest operator of shelters for migrant children.

The Department of Justice reportedly probed the nonprofit charity last year over possible misused of federal funds.

Southwest Key Programs was thrust into the national spotlight after the Trump administration implemented its “zero tolerance” immigration policy, which resulted in thousands of migrant children being separated from their families at the border. President Trump later reversed the policy after widespread backlash.