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Members urge end to child detention at Dilley and elsewhere, highlight medical and welfare concerns
Summary
During a multi-member special order, lawmakers described prolonged detention, medical neglect and trauma for children in federal custody and called for ending or reforming family and child detention practices.
A series of House members used extended floor time on March 26 to spotlight treatment of children in immigration custody, including conditions at the Dilley family residential center in Texas and reports of long stays for unaccompanied minors.
Representative Sydney Dexter, who led the special order, said she intervened when a constituent family was detained and escorted them home, and urged the House to stop practices that detain children far from sponsors and lawful family members. "Children need care and compassion, not cruelty and cages," Representative Becca Balint said during remarks that summarized medical and psychological concerns raised by pediatricians and child‑welfare experts.
Multiple members recounted accounts from parents, school officials and clinicians: children who had been held well beyond the 20‑day timeline set out by longstanding court settlements; reports of watery or poor‑quality food and drinking water; delays or denials of medical care for chronic conditions; and children reporting nightmares, regression and signs of severe anxiety.
Democratic members called for immediate reforms: ending use of family detention for routine immigration processing, guaranteed access to counsel and medical care for detained children, and expedited release to appropriate sponsors wherever possible. Several members also criticized the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement for sharing sponsor data with immigration enforcement, an action critics said created barriers to family reunification.
The special‑order segment featured more than a dozen speakers and included personal examples from members who had visited facilities, accompanied constituents and pressed agency officials for records.
Members said further oversight hearings and specific legislative steps will be necessary to prevent future harm and to provide medical and mental‑health services to children who remain in custody.
