Former U.S. prosecutor leads legal team for migrant children at Villages in Topeka
http://www.cjonline.com/news/20180625/former-us-prosecutor-leads-legal-team-for-migrant-children-at-villages-in-topeka
A team of attorneys led by former federal prosecutor Barry Grissom is working to reintegrate 44 migrant children living in Topeka with their families.
House Minority Leader Jim Ward, D-Wichita, has helped organize representation for the children and called on the state to take action at the Villages, a state-licensed therapy home with a federal contract to house unaccompanied migrant kids. Ward said nine of the children are younger than 12.
The biggest thing about the lawyers is to make sure these kids dont fall through the cracks and theres an effort to find the parents for these 44 kids, Ward said.
Lawmakers and attorneys are talking with state officials this week to determine their options. Grissom, who served as U.S. attorney for Kansas from 2010 to 2016, is assembling the pro bono legal team.
At El Centro, a ministry collecting donations for the children, a steady stream of families and individuals delivered offerings throughout Monday: Clothes, snacks, toys, coloring books, school supplies, sports equipment, movies, stuffed animals. The organizations executive president, Lalo Munoz, said five to 10 people brought goods every hour the ministry is open, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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