SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — San Diego County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer is pushing to expand legal representation for undocumented migrant children after federal funding cuts left hundreds of minors without attorneys.
The Trump administration's policy changes have eliminated protections for undocumented minors, prompting Lawson-Remer to seek local solutions to prevent children from facing immigration court alone.
"Unless we act here in San Diego - even toddlers will be forced to face a judge and federal prosecutor, completely alone," Lawson-Remer said.
Federal funding for the Unaccompanied Children Program is set to end by the end of September, leaving tens of thousands of migrant children across the U.S. without legal representation in immigration court proceedings. Lawson-Remer said 300 of them live in San Diego County.
"Imagine there's a kid, there's 4 year olds, 6 year olds, 8 year olds, who have to stand in front of a judge, how are they supposed to articulate their rights?" Lawson-Remer said.
The supervisor hopes to expand the county's Immigrant Legal Defense Program that she started in 2022. Attorney Michael Garcia serves as the program director.
"Its changing the way we operate so we're able to capture all these individuals who are suddenly becoming unrepresented," Garcia said.
The program currently provides discounted legal representation to detained migrants facing deportation. Lawson-Remer's proposal would extend coverage to include undocumented minors outside of custody.
The county's annual budget allocates $5 million to the Immigrant Legal Defense Program. Lawson-Remer said expanding the program would not require additional funds.
Supervisor Jim Desmond opposes the expansion, calling it a temporary fix to a larger problem.
"We should've never allowed unaccompanied minors to cross the border," Desmond said.
Desmond said he remains undecided on how he'll vote on the proposal but disagrees with continued funding for the program. He would prefer spending the money on county infrastructure improvements.
"They can have due process but I dont think local san deigans should pay for their legal fees," Desmond said.
The Board of Supervisors will vote on the proposal next Tuesday.
"This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy."
