Pregnant Migrant Children Moved to Texas Shelter Where Abortion Is Outlawed
According to a joint investigation by The Texas Newsroom and The California Newsroom, the Trump administration is reportedly concentrating all pregnant children held in federal immigration enforcement custody into a single group shelter located in south Texas. This is a state where abortion is completely outlawed, with no exceptions even for survivors of rape or incest.
Minors as Young as 13 'Trapped' in Texas Facility
Since last summer, more than a dozen pregnant minors, some as young as 13 years old, have been transferred to a facility in San Benito, which is situated along the U.S.-Mexico border. Sources within the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), a division of the Department of Health and Human Services, provided this information. The ORR is responsible for children who entered the United States without a parent or legal guardian, or who were separated from their families by immigration authorities.
This detention at the Texas facility represents a significant deviation from longstanding federal policy. Historically, unaccompanied minors have been placed into ORR shelters or foster homes that are specifically equipped to handle high-risk pregnancies. Legal advocates and care providers now express deep concern that the administration has intentionally concentrated these vulnerable girls into a poorly equipped Texas shelter, regardless of where they were originally detained, to effectively deny them access to abortion care.
Deliberate Policy to Deny Reproductive Healthcare
"It's not a coincidence that the Trump administration is sending young pregnant girls to be detained in a state where abortion is banned," stated Liz Wagner, senior federal policy counsel for the Center for Reproductive Rights. "It's beyond cruel to trap these girls — some who are victims of sexual assault — in a state where they have no choice over whether to remain pregnant and become mothers. Everyone deserves the right to make these fundamental decisions for themselves."
The San Benito shelter has been operated by the contractor Urban Strategies since December 2021. Between January 2021 and January 2025, at least 136 pregnant unaccompanied children were detained at this location, according to information obtained by The Independent.
Internal Directive and Policy Reversal
In July, ORR's acting director Angie Salazar, a former Immigration and Customs Enforcement official, instructed the agency via email to place "any pregnant children into the San Benito program moving forward." This directive was obtained by media outlets.
Wendy Young, president of Kids In Need of Defense, an organization providing support for unaccompanied children, emphasized the critical need for healthcare access. "It is imperative that all children in care are afforded access to high-quality healthcare services, which includes reproductive health services," she said. "Pregnant and parenting youth have unique needs and vulnerabilities and should never be prevented from accessing or requesting healthcare services. Policy choices designed to thwart such access, including by potentially transferring children to facilities or locations with limited services, pose grave danger."
In a statement to The Independent, ORR asserted that it "works to ensure the safety, well-being, and appropriate care of all unaccompanied alien children in its custody" and "follows child welfare best practices to place each child, including those who are pregnant or parenting, in the least restrictive and most integrated setting that meets the child’s best interest and specific needs."
Contrast with Previous Administration and Legal Barriers
Following the 2022 Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, the Biden administration had directed ORR to move girls who wished to terminate their pregnancies to facilities in states where abortion access remained legal. However, upon returning to the White House, President Trump issued an executive order aimed at ending the use of federal taxpayer dollars to fund or promote elective abortion. Subsequently, the Department of Justice determined that the government could not move detainees between states to facilitate abortion access, except in cases of rape, incest, or to save the life of the pregnant patient.
Last month, ORR submitted a proposal to completely revoke the Biden-era policy that allowed for such transfers.
Broader Context of Pregnant Women in Immigration Custody
The exact number of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women currently in ICE custody remains unclear. However, data from reporting, lawsuits, and congressional reports suggests dozens were detained by immigration authorities within the last year. ICE's own internal policy states that the agency "should not detain, arrest, or take into custody for an administrative violation of the immigration laws individuals known to be pregnant, postpartum, or nursing" except in exceptional circumstances, implying this figure should ideally be zero.
Reports from detained women include being denied prenatal care, lacking access to essential items like breast pumps, adequate food, and water, all while being shackled, handcuffed, and separated from their families. Lawsuits from pregnant women seeking release from ICE detention are a regular feature on court dockets.
Recent legal cases highlight the administration's approach:
- Last month, a federal judge in Minnesota strongly criticized the detention of a legally admitted refugee who was still breastfeeding her five-month-old baby. Judge Michael Davis noted the "particularly craven" act of transferring a nursing mother out-of-state, causing her to lose important bonding and nursing time.
- Last week in Texas, a woman who was five months pregnant, and who reported being forcefully removed from her car and arrested at gunpoint before being sent to an El Paso detention center, was granted a hearing to challenge her potential removal from the country.
- In Louisiana, a judge denied the release of an asylum-seeking woman who was 14 weeks pregnant and had been arrested in Massachusetts in December.
Resumption of Family Separation Practices
Since Trump's return to the White House, ICE has moved more than 400 children into ORR shelters. Advocates speaking to The Independent have described this as an "unprecedented" return of the Trump administration's notorious family separation policy, now targeting families who have lived in the United States for years. These arrests are feared to be forcing parents into impossible decisions that tear households apart.
Homeland Security officials have repeatedly insisted that the administration is not splitting up families. They state that deported parents are given the option to either leave the country with their children or place them with a guardian in the United States.
