Washington, 6 October 2025 — A federal judge has temporarily barred U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from automatically transferring unaccompanied migrant children into adult detention facilities once they turn 18, ruling that the practice violates existing legal protections.
Court Ruling
The decision, issued by Judge Rudolph Contreras of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, came in response to an emergency motion filed by immigration advocacy groups. The judge reaffirmed a 2021 injunction requiring federal agencies to pursue the “least restrictive setting available” for so-called age-outs — minors who reach adulthood while in federal custody or foster care.
Contreras’ order blocks ICE from implementing a new policy that would have directed field offices to detain 18-year-olds in adult facilities, a move critics argued was unlawful and harmful to vulnerable youth.
Policy Controversy
The ruling followed reports that ICE had also introduced a controversial program offering $2,500 stipends to minors who agreed to voluntarily return to their home countries upon turning 18. Advocacy groups described the initiative as coercive, while ICE defended it as a “strictly voluntary” option subject to judicial approval.
Broader Context
Unaccompanied minors are typically housed in shelters overseen by the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) under the Department of Health and Human Services. Upon turning 18, many are released to relatives or placed in supervised care. Advocacy groups argue that automatic detention undermines both humanitarian standards and federal law.
Next Steps
The court’s temporary restraining order halts ICE’s policy shift while litigation proceeds. The ruling underscores ongoing tensions between the Biden administration’s immigration enforcement priorities and long-standing protections for migrant children.
