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AP
A Los Angeles federal judge ordered the Trump administration to seek his consent before administering psychotropic drugs to immigrant children held in an institution in Texas.
District Judge Dolly M. Gee ruled that the government was violating a court order issued in the mid-1980s, known as the Flores Settlement, which governs the treatment of immigrant child detainees. There are more than 10,000 minors in federal custody. The vast majority of them have arrived at the southern border without being accompanied by Central America long before the current controversy over separated families created by the Zero Tolerance Immigration Policy of the United States. Trump administration. The regulation required the government to keep young people in the least restrictive environment possible.
Counsel argued that the children at Shiloh's residential treatment center in Manvel, Texas, were receiving powerful psychotropic drugs without any explanation. These drugs are used to treat a range of conditions from schizophrenia to depression. In some cases, the children would have been informed that if they did not take the drugs, their detention periods would be prolonged.
Justice Gee says government must obtain parental consent or court order before to give psychotropic drugs to children, unless it is an emergency. The judge also ordered the government to explain in writing to the children why they were being detained. She also ruled that the government could only detain a minor for "gang involvement".
In addition, Gee ordered that all young people covered by the Flores decision be removed from the Shiloh Residential Treatment Center unless a psychologist or a registered psychiatrist. The judge's decision follows another decision made on Friday. , in which she stated that she would appoint an independent monitor to oversee the facilities where the immigrant children are held.
A spokesman for the Department of Justice declined to comment on Gee's decision.
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