Immigrant toddler was sexually abused in custody while her father sought her release, lawyer says
An immigration attorney says a 3-year-old girl spent more than five months in federal custody -- and was allegedly sexually abused -- even though her father, a lawful permanent resident, was available to care for her.
Lauren Fisher Flores, an attorney with the South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project, told ABC News that the child, identified by the pseudonym "Lily," was placed in an Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) shelter shortly after being separated from her mother when they arrived at the southern border on Sept. 16, 2025.
According to a habeas corpus petition filed in federal court in February, the child's father "immediately" submitted sponsorship paperwork, but he was not reunited with his daughter for over five months.
"Her father immediately filled out the sponsorship paperwork and then was given a series of other requirements that continued to grow even though ORR policy indicates that for a parent, the release should be within 10 days," Flores said.
During the time the father was trying to secure the 3-year-old's release, the toddler was allegedly sexually abused multiple times by an older child at the Hands of Healing foster home in Harlingen, Texas, Flores said.
Flores told ABC News the father was initially told by ORR that an "accident" had occurred, and only learned details of the abuse months later through his attorneys. The father and the 3-year-old are now together, Flores said.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, the agency that oversees the Office of Refugee Resettlement, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
"This has changed her life. It's changed her family's life," Flores said. And it's really hard to see it happening."
The allegations come as the average length of care for migrant children has increased to 195 days as of February 2026, compared to 24 days in 2024, according to Department of Health and Human Services data.
"Detention fatigue takes a real toll on children, and we have seen an increase in behaviors like depression, anxiety, and self‑harm amongst children who are detained for a long period of time," Flores said.
