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According to government figures collected by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), 70,035 unaccompanied minor cases are pending in the immigration court system. That's only a fraction of the total backlog of 445,607 cases. However, the minors' cases are known to contribute to delays in the courts because the Department of Justice has instructed immigration judges to prioritize, or "fast track" deportation hearings for the minors.
Many of the minors are forced to appear in immigration courts without the benefit of legal counsel because there are too few immigration attorneys available to represent them. The ACLU filed suit, arguing that the minors have a right to a government-paid lawyer. That case is being heard by a federal judge in Seattle.
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