A federal judge ordered the U.S. government to "expeditiously" house children who illegally enter the country, instead of allowing the children to remain in open-air locations along the border.
The order issued late Wednesday evening by California-based U.S. District Court Judge Dolly Gee was mostly in favor of the attorneys representing the minors in the class-action lawsuit.
The decision established that the Department of Homeland Security had legal custody of the children, who are thus entitled to rights and protections even before being formally processed.
Justice Department attorneys had argued that the children had not been formally apprehended so they were not in Homeland Security's custody, and thus, the agency did not need to provide such protections.
