A father says his 3-year-old daughter was sexually abused while in U.S. government custody after months of delays in her release, a case that comes as detention times for migrant children have sharply increased under new federal policies.
The girl, who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border with her mother last September, spent about five months in federal care before being released to her father, a legal permanent resident. During that time, according to a lawsuit reviewed by The Associated Press, she was placed in a foster home in Texas, where she later reported being abused by another child.
"She was so long in there," the father told the AP, speaking anonymously to protect his daughter's identity. "I just think that if they had moved faster, nothing like that would have happened."
The case highlights a broader shift in how the federal government handles immigrant children. Average custody times have risen from about 37 days at the start of the Trump administration in 2025 to nearly 200 days earlier this year, according to the report. Legal advocates say stricter vetting requirements for parents and sponsors, along with enforcement actions against some of them, have slowed reunifications.
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Lauren Fisher Flores, an attorney representing the child, said the father was not initially informed of the alleged abuse and only learned of it while preparing a legal challenge to secure her release. "To have your child abused while in the government's care... it is unimaginable," she said.
Advocates say the delays are forcing more families to turn to emergency legal filings to reunite with children. "Increasingly, we have to turn to the federal courts," Fisher Flores said.
Other recent cases point to similar patterns. In Minnesota, a 5-year-old Ecuadorian boy was detained alongside his father during an enforcement operation and later showed signs of deteriorating health.
Data reviewed in recent reports also indicates that dozens of sponsors have been detained during the reunification process, marking a shift from previous practices that allowed undocumented parents to regain custody after passing background checks.
Concerns have also grown over conditions inside family detention facilities. An open letter signed by public figures called for the closure of the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas, citing concerns over the treatment of minors detained there with their families and alleging "trauma, neglect and conditions that violate basic standards of health." The letter opens by saying that "no child should be locked in an immigration detention center."
For the father, the impact is already visible. After their reunion, he said his daughter began having nightmares and showing signs of distress. "She was never like that," he said.
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