California Sanctuary Laws Jeopardize Migrant Child Safety, Critics Allege

“That means we’re not going to let our social service workers go do welfare checks on unaccompanied minors for the Department of Homeland Security,” Goble told Fox News Digital. “It’s another rock and a hard place.” Wells added that it was difficult to accept Bonta’s suggestion that county agencies could serve as a neutral fallback for welfare checks tied to information from federal authorities. “This is the same county we would be deferring to, to check on these kids,” Wells added. “They’re not neutral. They’ve been very, very clear.”

Immigrant-rights advocates nationally have warned that ICE “welfare checks” on unaccompanied migrant children can function as immigration enforcement under the banner of child safety. The Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights has called the Trump administration’s ICE “wellness checks” harmful enforcement “in disguise,” while other advocates have warned that DHS visits can discourage sponsors from coming forward or expose families to deportation fears. But Wells and Goble rejected that framing, arguing local police could check on children without reporting immigration violations discovered during the visit.