Trump administration drops lawsuit against company accused of abusing
children at migrant shelters
[March 13, 2025]
By VALERIE GONZALEZ
McALLEN, Texas (AP) — The Trump administration moved to drop a civil
lawsuit Wednesday against the largest provider of housing for migrant
children over allegations of sexual abuse and harassment of
unaccompanied minors, saying it also would no longer use the provider.
The motion to dismiss the suit against Southwest Key Programs was filed
after the federal government announced it had moved all unaccompanied
children to other shelters.
The complaint, filed last year during the Biden administration, alleged
a litany of offenses between 2015 and 2023 as Southwest Key Programs,
which operates migrant shelters in Texas, Arizona and California,
amassed nearly $3 billion in contracts from the Department of Health and
Human Services.
The agency said it stopped sending unaccompanied children to the
provider's facilities “out of continuing concerns relating to these
placements,” and said it would review grants going to the contractor. In
view of the agency's action, the Department of Justice has dismissed its
lawsuit against Southwest Key, HHS said in a statement.
The shelter provider said they were pleased with the decision to dismiss
the case. “Southwest Key strongly denied the claims relating to child
sexual abuse in our shelters, and there is no settlement or payment
required," the statement Wednesday evening said.
“We always believed the facts would prove the allegations to be without
merit. We thank the Government for its commitment to reviewing the whole
record and dropping the case with prejudice,” they added.
This week, Southwest Key Programs furloughed employees across the
country. “Due to the unforeseen federal funding freeze and the stop
placement order on our unaccompanied minor shelters and Home Study Post
Release programs by the Office of Refugee Resettlement, we have made the
difficult decision to furlough approximately 5,000 Southwest Key
Programs’ employees,” the company said in a statement shared Tuesday.
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In this photo taken June 9, 2014 the recently renovated Southwest
Key Programs facility in San Benito, Texas is shown. (David
Pike/Valley Morning Star via AP)
According to allegations in the 2024 lawsuit, Southwest Key
employees, including supervisors, raped, inappropriately touched or
solicited sex and nude images of children beginning at least in
2015.
Among the accusations: One employee “repeatedly sexually abused”
three girls ages 5, 8 and 11 at the Casa Franklin shelter in El
Paso, Texas, with the 8-year-old telling investigators the worker
“entered their bedrooms in the middle of the night to touch their
‘private area.’”
The lawsuit also alleged that another employee, at a shelter in
Mesa, Arizona, took a 15-year-old boy to a hotel and paid him to
perform sexual acts for several days in 2020.
Children were warned not to report the alleged abuse and threatened
with violence against themselves or their families if they did,
according to the lawsuit. Victims testified that in some instances,
other workers knew about the abuse but failed to report or concealed
it, the complaint said.
“DOJ's lawsuit revealed horrific sexual abuse and inhumane treatment
of children detained in Southwest Key shelters,” said Leecia Welch,
an attorney who represents unaccompanied children in a separate
case. “It's shocking to me that the government now turns a blind eye
to their own contractor's actions. I hope the impacted children will
have other legal recourse and support in healing from their abuse.”
The lawsuit may not be over. On Wednesday, the National Center for
Youth Law asked the court not to dismiss the case and grant them an
opportunity to formally intervene on behalf of those affected by the
alleged abuse. If granted, they would have 30 days to file a motion
in the lawsuit.
At least two employees have been indicted on criminal charges
related to the allegations since 2020.
The civil lawsuit had sought a jury trial and monetary damages for
the victims.
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