At least eight of the estimated 60,000 unaccompanied minors from Central America detained while crossing the U.S.-Mexican border have landed in Hawaii — and more could be on the way.
The youngsters were transported here by the federal government to live with relatives while they await federal hearings to determine whether they should be deported or allowed to stay in the country, Hawaii immigration attorneys said Wednesday.
“These kids are literally fleeing for their lives on an incredibly dangerous journey,” said Clare Hanusz,
a Honolulu attorney who leads the Hawaii Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
Free legal representation likely will be offered by some members of the association to families who cannot afford a lawyer, Hanusz said.
Honolulu immigration attorney John Egan said it’s no surprise a few of the Central American minors were brought to Hawaii considering the federal government was overwhelmed by the immigration surge and millions of undocumented families are found all over the United States, including in the islands.
"There’s no place where they can responsibly care for these kids," he said. "It’s in their best interest to be with their family."
Representatives of the U.S. Department Health and Human Services and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement could not be reached for comment Wednesday afternoon.
About 60,000 unaccompanied minors have been detained crossing the border at Mexico since October, fleeing violence in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, and lured in part by rumors of amnesty. The federal government has turned warehouses and military bases into immigration shelters to deal with the crisis. Describing the events as an urgent humanitarian situation, in early June President Barack Obama called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate the government response.
Honolulu has a U.S. immigration court with two judges, where about 40 lawyers practice. Hearings for the young immigrants could take from two to six months or more depending on circumstances and appeals, Egan said.
