U.S. centers force migrant children to
take drugs: lawsuit
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[June 21, 2018]
(Reuters) - Immigrant children are
being routinely and forcibly given a range of psychotropic drugs at U.S.
government-funded youth shelters to manage their trauma after being
detained and in some cases separated from parents, according to a
lawsuit.
Children held at facilities such as the Shiloh Treatment Center in Texas
are almost certain to be administered the drugs, irrespective of their
condition, and without their parents' consent, according to the lawsuit
filed by the Los Angeles-based Center for Human Rights & Constitutional
Law.
The Shiloh center, which specializes in services for children and youths
with behavioral and emotional problems, did not respond immediately to a
request for comment.
The lawsuit was filed on April 16, days after the introduction of the
Trump Administration's "zero tolerance" policy to separate children from
parents who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border illegally. Trump abandoned
the policy on Wednesday.
"If you’re in Shiloh then it’s almost certain you are on these
medications. So if any child were placed in Shiloh after being separated
from a parent, then they’re almost certainly on psychotropics," said
Carlos Holguin, a lawyer representing the Center for Human Rights &
Constitutional Law.
Officials at the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), which oversees
such centers, were not immediately available for comment.
Taking multiple psychotropic drugs at the same time can seriously injure
children, according to the filing, which highlights the need for
oversight to prevent medications being used as "chemical straight
jackets," rather than treat actual mental health needs.
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ORR-run centers unilaterally administer the drugs to children in
disregard of laws in Texas and other states that require either a
parent's consent or a court order, the filing said.
The lawsuit seeks a shift in ORR policies to comply with state laws
and prevent the prolonged detention of children.
Some youths at Shiloh reported being given up to nine different
pills in the morning and six in the evening and said they were told
they would remain detained if they refused drugs, the lawsuit said.


Some said they had been held down and given injections when they
refused to take medication, the lawsuit said.
One mother said neither she nor any other family member had been
consulted about medication given to her daughter, even though Shiloh
had their contact details. Another mother said her daughter received
such powerful anti-anxiety medications she collapsed several times,
according to the filing.
(Reporting by Andrew Hay in Taos, New Mexico; Editing by Paul Tait)
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