Arizona Daily Sun from Flagstaff, Arizona • A6

A6 Tuesday, June 19, 2018 ArizonA DAily Sun 1 children and report back with a way for parents to know where their children are. On June 6, U.S. Of- fice spokesman Cosme Lopez said prosecutors in Tucson were work- ing with law enforcement and the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which places children split from their parents in foster care or with family members, to develop a to keep parents informed about their children. A week later, Lopez said he was what was happening with the mechanism. Prosecutors are still working with federal law enforcement and the courts to develop the mech- anism, Lopez said.

They also are consulting with other federal ju- dicial districts on the U.S.-Mexico border. Lopez declined to discuss the obstacles to putting a system in place. The Office of Refugee Resettlement did not respond to a request for information, nor did the Border Tucson Sector. Meanwhile, 51 parents from Central American countries, most of whom are Guatemalans who turned themselves in to Border Patrol agents near Lukeville, have asked magistrate judges in Tucson for the whereabouts of 55 children, according to an ongoing review of court records by the Arizona Daily Star. Along the entire U.S.-Mexico border, the Border Patrol held 1,995 minors traveling with 1,940 adults between April 19 and May 31 while the adults were crimi- nally prosecuted, a Department of Homeland Security spokesman said Friday.

The separations came after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a zero-tolerance pol- icy for prosecuting illegal border crossers. As a result of that pol- icy, children are separated from parents who are criminally pros- ecuted for crossing the border il- legally. In mid-May, when parents started asking magistrate judges in Tucson where their children were, often amid tears, the judges put their requests on the record. Then the judges started recom- mending families be reunited after parents are released from criminal custody. The judges often reiterate that their recommendations are not orders.

request to pros- ecutors marked a next step, but federal prosecutors, who are re- ferred to as in court, have so far pointed at other federal agencies when asked by judges for information on chil- whereabouts. there was a will, be a defense lawyer Machado said in an interview. just think the proper effort is being expended to make a bad situation Machado said the actions in case make Berillos and her daughter were taken into custody two days before their hearing, but they separated until the morning of the hearing. As is the case with most parents prosecuted through Streamline, Berillos was sched- uled to be sentenced to time served, released and deported. would think they would know that and keep them to- Machado said.

Berillos planned to file an asy- lum claim based on her fear of returning to El Salvador, she was so distraught about her daughter she even care about that he said. wanted her Some of the children separated from their parents are placed by the Office of Refugee Resettle- ment at a government-funded shelter in Tucson run by South- west Key. When children arrive at the shelter, have no idea where their parents nor do the case managers, said Antar Davidson, who worked at Southwest shelter in Tucson from February until he resigned June 12. He was told to tell a Brazilian child it would take a week to lo- cate his parents and another week to arrange a conversation. After arrangements are made, most children get two phone calls each week to talk to their parents, he said.

Davidson is a field director for state Rep. Pamela Powers Han- nley, a Tucson Democrat. She recently co-sponsored a bill to increase transparency at private prisons funded by tax dollars. Davidson said he opposes pri- vate prisons and for He decided to talk about what he saw at the shelter because he a personal responsibility to kind of share their struggle and help ease their Before the zero-tolerance pol- icy, the children placed at the shelter had crossed the border on their own, rather than being sep- arated from their parents, David- son said. They expected to spend months without family mem- bers, and many already had set up sponsors in the United States.

But the zero-tolerance policy started filling the shelter with children who were from being forcibly from their parents, he said. While answers for parents are unavailable in court, local non- profits try to fill the void. Among their efforts is providing a petition for an asylum hearing to Streamline defendants and send- ing emails to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said Peter Hirschman, a member of the End Streamline Coalition and the asylum team leader for Keep Tucson Together. When the petition is passed along to the appropriate agency, seems to work pretty he said.

In the case of a Guatemalan woman who was prosecuted in mid-May, her lawyer put the names of the children on an ICE form and arranged for a hearing to explain her fear of returning to Guatemala. The mother was able to speak with her children and then get in touch with her sis- ter, who is trying to have the kids placed with her in North Carolina, Hirschman said. At the detention center in Eloy, where ICE records show at least 12 parents prosecuted in Tucson were detained while awaiting deportation after being released from criminal custody, posters near the phone used by detain- ees explain how to contact the Office of Refugee Resettlement, Hirschman said. In some cases, the Guatema- lan consulate also is arranging for parents to be reunited with children at airports before flying back to Guatemala, he said. But if those arrangements work, children may spend months sep- arated from their parents.

Contact reporter Curt Prendergast at 573-4224 or tucson.com or on Twitter CurtTucsonstar Kids From A1 FROM PAGE ONE ZEKE MILLER AND KEVIN MCGILL Associated Press WASHINGTON An unapol- ogetic President Donald Trump defended his bor- der-protection policies Monday in the face of rising national outrage over the forced separation of mi- grant children from their parents. Calling for tough action against il- legal immigration, Trump declared the U.S. not be a migrant on his watch. Images of children held in fenced cages fueled a growing chorus of condemnation from both political parties, four former first ladies and national evangelical leaders. The children are being held separately from parents who are being pros- ecuted under the policy for illegal border crossings.

say very strongly the Dem- Trump said Monday as his administration rejected crit- icism that the policy has resulted in inhuman and immoral conditions. Trump pointed toward more lenient policies under past ad- ministrations that did not charge all migrants who had crossed ille- gally. But he falsely blamed his po- litical rivals for the consequences of a crackdown his administration initiated. will not apologize for the job we do or for the job law en- forcement does, for doing the job that the American people expect us to Homeland Security Sec- retary Kirstjen Nielsen said in an appearance before the National Association in New Orle- ans. actions have and must have consequences.

No more free passes, no more get out of jail free Nearly 2,000 children were separated from their families over a six-week period in April and May after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the new policy that refers all cases of illegal entry for criminal prosecution. Prior procedure lim- ited prosecution for many family entrants, in part because regula- tions prohibit detaining children with their parents since the chil- dren are not charged with a crime and the parents are. The policy change was meant to deter unlawful crossings and Sessions issued a warning last month to those entering the U.S. illegally that their children itably for a period of time might be in different The current holding areas drew widespread attention after jour- nalists gained access to one site Sunday. At a McAllen, Texas, de- tention center hundreds of im- migrant children wait in a series of cages created by metal fencing.

One cage had 20 children inside. Scattered about are bottles of water, bags of chips and large foil sheets intended to serve as blan- kets. Audio of sobbing children calling out for their parents dominated the discussion Monday. one child is heard weeping in an audio file that was first reported by the nonprofit ProPublica and later provided to The Associated Press. Mindful of the national outcry, lawmakers in both parties rushed Monday to devise a targeted leg- islative fix.

GOP senators, including Lind- sey Graham of South Carolina, Jeff Flake of Arizona and Susan Collins of Maine, said they were consid- ering legislation that would keep migrant families together; provide additional judges so detained fam- ilies would face shorter waiting pe- riods; and provide facilities for the families to stay. Graham said he talked Monday to about 40 senators, including Democrats, but not Senate Ma- jority Leader Mitch McConnell. a concept it seems everybody is jumping on he said. California Sen. Dianne Fein- stein said she had the backing of the Democratic caucus for a bill would that prohibit the separation of migrant children from their par- ents, with exceptions for findings of child abuse or trafficking.

Trump stands by border family separation policy Truth in Taxation Hearing Notice of Tax Increase In compliance with section 42-17107, Arizona Revised Statutes, the Coconino County Board of Supervisors is notifying its property taxpayers of Coconino intention to raise its primary property taxes over last level. Coconino County is proposing an increase in primary property taxes of $187,911 or For example, the proposed tax increase will cause Coconino primary property taxes on a $100,000 home to increase from $54.79 (total taxes that would be owed without the proposed tax increase) to $55.89 (total proposed taxes including the tax increase). This proposed increase is exclusive of increased primary property taxes received from new construction. The increase is also exclusive of any changes that may occur from property tax levies for voter approved bonded indebtedness or budget and tax overrides. All interested citizens are invited to attend the Public Hearing on the tax increase that is scheduled to be held Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 6:00 pm, in the County Administrative Center First Floor Meeting Room, 219 East Cherry, Flagstaff, Arizona.

Publish on and Truth in Taxation Hearing Notice of Tax Increase In compliance with section 48-254, Arizona Revised Statutes, the Coconino County Public Health Services District is notifying its property taxpayers of the Coconino County Public Health Services intention to raise its secondary property taxes over last level. The Coconino County Public Health Services District is proposing an increase in secondary property taxes of $148,620 or 3.61%. For example, the proposed tax increase will cause the Coconino County Public Health Services secondary property taxes to increase from $24.13 (total taxes that would be owed without the proposed tax increase) to $25.00 (total proposed taxes including the tax increase). This proposed increase is exclusive of increased secondary property taxes received fromnewconstruction. The increase is also exclusive of any changes that may occur from property tax levies for voter approved bonded indebtedness.

All interested citizens are invited to attend the Public Hearing on the tax increase that is scheduled to be held Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 6:00 pm, in the County Administrative Center First Floor Meeting Room, 219 East Cherry, Flagstaff, Arizona. Publish on and.