The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said on March 12 that it has stopped placing unaccompanied illegal immigrant children in shelters operated by housing provider Southwest Key Programs Inc. over allegations of sexual abuse and harassment. HHS said it has moved all minors previously housed at those facilities to other shelters.
The department said that it decided to stop placing children in Southwest Key facilities “out of continuing concerns relating to these placements.”
Southwest is funded by grants from the HHS Office of Refugee Resettlement, according to HHS. The department said it will review its grants with the organization.
“This administration is working fearlessly to end the tragedy of human trafficking and other abuses of unaccompanied alien children who enter the country illegally,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said. “For too long, pernicious actors have exploited such children both before and after they enter the United States. Today’s action is a significant step toward ending this appalling abuse of innocents.”
The plaintiffs also claimed in the filing that some of the children were threatened by employees to stay silent about the abuse.
They further claimed that Southwest Key was aware of the abuse but failed to take appropriate action to protect the children in its care and did not follow federal requirements for preventing, detecting, and reporting abuse, including sexual harassment.
“Securing our border and protecting children from abuse are among the most critical missions of the Department of Justice and the Trump administration,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said on Wednesday. “Under the border policies of the previous administration, bad actors were incentivized to exploit children and break our laws: this ends now.”
The DOJ claimed in its lawsuit Southwest Key’s actions constituted a “pattern or practice of discrimination in housing because of sex” in violation of the Fair Housing Act.
It sought a jury trial, an unspecified amount in monetary damages for the victims, and asked the court to ban Southwest Key from future discrimination.
At the time the lawsuit was filed, Southwest Key spokesperson Anais Biera Miraclea told The Epoch Times that the housing provider’s primary focus was the “safety, health, and well-being of each one of the children and youth we care for.”
Miraclea added that the complaint did not “present the accurate picture of the care and commitment our employees provide to the youth and children.”
On Wednesday, the National Center for Youth Law asked the court not to dismiss the case and to grant it an opportunity to formally intervene on behalf of those affected by the alleged abuse. If granted, the organization would have 30 days to file a motion in the lawsuit.
At least two employees have been indicted on criminal charges related to the allegations since 2020.
A spokesperson for Southwest Key Programs Inc. told The Epoch Times it is pleased the DOJ has dropped its case in its entirety against the organization.
“Southwest Key strongly denied the claims relating to child sexual abuse in our shelters, and there is no settlement or payment required,” the spokesperson said. “We are glad this matter is now concluded.”
Southwest Key “always believed the facts would prove the allegations to be without merit,” the spokesperson continued. “We thank the Government for its commitment to reviewing the whole record and dropping the case with prejudice. To our employees, we thank them for staying positive despite the allegations, knowing that we care and do our best in operating our shelters of unaccompanied minors crossing the border.”
