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Attorneys for the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reported in a court filing late on Thursday that about 364 of some 2,500 families with children aged 5 and older have been unified since Sabraw's bid was issued more than three weeks ago.
It was ill-defined from the status report, filed as part of an American Civil Liberties Union lawsuit challenging parent-child separations at the border, precisely how many more reunification's were probably before the July 26 deadline.
According to report, nearly 850 parents have been interviewed and cleared for reunification so far yet another 229 parents have been deemed ineligible because of criminal records, or because they "waived" reunification or for other reasons. The rest are pending review.
The report likewise said more than 700 parents in question have final deportation orders, although Sabraw has barred the expulsion of those parents until at least a week after they retrieve their children so they have adequate time for legal counsel on their families best options.
As a part of Trump's immigration policy - "zero tolerance" - children were apart from their parents by the U.S. officials at the U.S.-Mexico border, leading to an international outcry. On June 20, Trump signed an executive order halting the practice.
The recent hearings are used by Sabraw to push back on procedures that the attorneys of government have said are meant to safeguard its children in its custody.
The regime blamed those measures for missing a July 10 deadline to reunite children under age 5, although the administration said they have now all since been returned to their parents.
The judge has accused the government of either acting in defiance of his order or lacking the resources to fix the mess it created.
Sabraw said at a hearing on Monday he was reassured that the government was finally putting the emphasis on reuniting families over lengthy procedures aimed at combating human trafficking that the judge said did not apply.
Regarding the comments, on Thursday, he may press the government by the U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen suggesting she might differ on the emphasis placed on speedy reunification's, saying "we will not cut corners."
By Sowmya Sangam
