特朗普政府向德州小型律师事务所Burke Law Group授予1.5亿美元合同，为无人陪伴的移民儿童提供法律代理服务[1]。该合同以单一来源方式授予，不经竞争招标程序，自8月15日起执行期为一年[1]。前任合同已于上周五到期[1]。
法律援助组织对此举措表示严重警惕。Burke Law Group的律师队伍仅有25人，其中仅2人声称具有移民法相关经验[1]。事务所创始人Marcella Burke曾在特朗普第一任期内担任环保局和内政部律师[1]。Amica Center主任Michael Lukens表示，"这真的令人沮丧和震惊"，并指出"孩子将无法获得有意义的正当程序，无法在法庭上获得有意义的一天。我们不能让一个随机律师事务所被信任来照看儿童"[1]。
根据《2008年贩运受害者保护重新授权法》，政府被要求为被驱逐儿童提供法律代理[1]。当前政府庇护所内有约1800名移民儿童，在庇护所外生活的移民儿童约22000人[1]。法律援助人士担忧缺乏专业经验的律师队伍将无法为这些儿童提供充分的法律保护，增加他们被驱逐出境的风险[1]。
The Trump administration has granted a $150 million contract to Burke Law Group, a small Texas-based law firm, to provide legal representation for unaccompanied migrant children [1]. The contract was awarded through a non-competitive single-source agreement beginning August 15 and lasting one year [1].
The decision has triggered significant concern among legal aid organizations over the firm's capacity to adequately serve this vulnerable population. Burke Law Group employs 25 lawyers, of whom only two claim to have experience in immigration law [1]. The firm's founder, Marcella Burke, served as an attorney for the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Interior during Trump's first term [1]. Michael Lukens, director of the Amica Center, expressed alarm at the arrangement, stating: "This is really disheartening and shocking. Children will not be able to get meaningful due process, will not be able to get a meaningful day in court. We cannot trust a random law firm to be trusted with children's welfare" [1]. Legal advocates worry the arrangement will leave approximately 1,800 migrant children currently in government shelters and roughly 22,000 living outside shelters vulnerable to deportation without adequate legal protection [1].
The contract succeeded a previous agreement that expired last Friday and is mandated under the 2008 Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, which requires the government to provide legal representation for children facing deportation [1].