The Latest: Judge considers expanding child separation case

HOUSTON – The Latest on the legal wrangling over the Trump administration’s policy to separate immigrant families who crossed the border illegally (all times local):

5 p.m.

A San Diego federal judge is considering expanding a landmark immigrant family separation case after a watchdog report found the Trump administration’s zero-tolerance policy was started as far back as July 2017.

Judge Dana Sabraw told the court Thursday that he would issue his ruling soon.

The government has acknowledged taking more than 2,700 children from their families last spring and has reunited most of them. But a watchdog report last month found that thousands of other children were separated and released before the June 26 order.

The American Civil Liberties Union wants the court to hold the government accountable for those children as well.

The government told the judge that would be a huge burden and dramatically change the case.