Please join us for an in-depth discussion about the latest developments in family detention with opening remarks by ABA President Paulette Brown. U.S. District Judge Dolly M. Gee ruled over the summer that the 1997 Flores settlement protections extend to noncitizen children who are detained with their parents and has affirmed that children do not belong in detention facilities operated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This decision is a clear victory for the rights of asylum-seeking families and provides solid recognition that children have particular needs and vulnerabilities that are severely hampered by even short periods of detention. Judge Gee ordered the government to comply with her ruling by October 23, 2015. The expert panel will discuss the extent of the protections under Flores, the ongoing litigation and the degree to which the government has complied with the Judge’s October 23 order, as well as what the future holds for immigrant children and families. In addition, the panel will discuss the findings in the recently released report, “Family Immigration Detention: Why the Past Cannot Be Prologue” developed by the ABA Commission on Immigration with the assistance of the law firm of O’Melveny & Myers LLP.

Speakers:

• Mary Meg McCarthy, Chair, Commission on Immigration, Moderator
• Melissa Crow, American Immigration Council
• Denise L. Gilman, UT Law Immigration Clinic
• Dora B. Schriro, Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection