US to test expedited asylum screenings at Mexico border

WASHINGTON (AP) — Migrants who enter the United States illegally will be screened by asylum officers while in custody under a limited experiment that provides them access to legal counsel, the Department of Homeland Security said Friday.

The new approach will start with a tiny number of migrants next week.

Officials said the trial run is part of preparations for the end of a pandemic-related rule expected on May 11 that has suspended rights to seek asylum for many.

If expanded, the new screening could bring major change to how people are processed upon reaching US soil to seek asylum.

Homeland Security officials said they will begin working with a legal services provider they declined to name that will represent asylum-seekers at initial screenings, known as “credible fear hearings.”

Access to legal representation will be critical to the plan moving ahead, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details that have not been publicly announced.

The screening interviews will be conducted in large US Customs and Border Protection temporary facilities stocked with phone lines that will be used for the hearings, officials said.

CBP policy limits detention to 72 hours, which will be the target to complete the screenings.

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