U.S. court rules against Trump administration in immigrant teen abortion case

(Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court ruled on Friday that the U.S.
government cannot deny access to abortions for unaccompanied
immigrant minors in federal custody, delivering a blow to a Trump
administration policy.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia Circuit upheld a lower court decision that
found the government cannot unduly burden the ability of a woman to
obtain an abortion under established Supreme Court precedent.

The case involves the intersection of two divisive social issues
on which Republican President Donald Trump has taken a hard line:
abortion and immigration.

It began with a 17-year-old girl, whose name and nationality
were not disclosed and was called “Jane Doe” in legal papers. She
came to the United States alone in 2017 and was placed in the care
of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which falls under the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services and houses immigrant
children.

The girl, who was in the United States illegally, obtained an
abortion after suing the administration in federal court. But the
Supreme Court last year allowed the litigation to continue in lower
courts to determine the fate of other detained immigrants in
similar situations.

The Office of Refugee Resettlement in March 2017 announced that
shelters were “prohibited from taking any action that facilitates
an abortion without direction and approval from the Director.”
Scott Lloyd, who had become the agency’s director that month, then
denied every abortion request presented to him during his tenure
even when the pregnancy resulted from rape, according to the
appeals court ruling. Lloyd left his post at the end of 2018.

“The policy functions as an across-the-board ban on access to
abortion,” the appeals court ruling said.

The U.S. Justice Department declined to comment.

In the 2018 fiscal year, there were almost 50,000 unaccompanied
minors referred to the refugee office’s network of some 100
shelters around the United States.

Minors from countries other than Mexico or Canada who cross the
border alone stay in federal care until they can be released to
sponsors in the United States or until they turn 18 and are
transferred to immigration detention. In fiscal year 2017, the only
year for which data is available, 18 pregnant unaccompanied minors
in the refugee office’s custody requested abortions, according to
the court ruling.

The Trump administration could appeal the ruling to the Supreme
Court but Justice Brett Kavanaugh, a conservative Trump appointee
who participated in the case when he served on the D.C. Circuit,
would likely be recused. That would leave the court split 4-4 along
ideological grounds.

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NYSC complies with FOIA —Brig. Gen. Ibrahim

The Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC),
Brig. Gen. Shuaibu Ibrahim, has disclosed that since the enactment
of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) in 2011, the Scheme has
been at the fore-front of ensuring total compliance with the
provisions of the Act.

Gen. Ibrahim, stated this during the NYSC Freedom of Information
Desk Officers’ Training Workshop, held at RockView Hotel Abuja.

The NYSC Boss said the workshop is aimed at consolidating the
successes recorded by the scheme regarding FOIA, and updating the
workshop’s participants knowledge on FOIA, as well as enhancing
their competence to perform even better.

He urged Nigerians to familiarize themselves with the NYSC Act
so as to understand better, the operations of the scheme and its
role expectations.

“Let me however seize this opportunity to remind the general
public that NYSC has done so much for the unity of the country over
the last four decades. Apart from promoting national unity, the
selfless service rendered by the young men and women on national
service have brought positive transformation in the socio-economic
development of the country over the years,” Brig. Gen. Ibrahim
said.

Also speaking at the occasion, a Research Professor of Law at
the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), Peter T.
Akper, said while records and information kept by NYSC can be
requested by members of the Public without showing any specific
interest in the information, the Scheme is also bound to disclose
such information except with respect to those exempted under the
FOIA.

He added that the NYSC has a duty to obey the law and provide
conditions necessary for the enjoyment of the right to information
by making proactive disclosure of information as required by
law.

He said the provisions of the FOI Act are designed to assist
public officers to embrace the new ethos of FOIA and discard the
culture of secrecy promoted by the Official Secrets Act, while
delivering a paper entitled, “FOI Act and Nigeria’s Democracy:
Issues and Challenges,” at the workshop.

Prof. Akper said: “The right to access records and request for
information is established by the Act. The right is so extensive
such that it is immaterial whether or not such information
requested is contained in any written form so long as such record
or information is in the custody or possession of any public
official, agency or institution howsoever described. Again, the
FOIA further protects those who receive such information and who
subsequently disclose such information.”

At the FOIA Desk Officers’ capacity-building workshop which was
themed: “Mainstreaming the Freedom of Information Act into
Effective Service Delivery in NYSC Scheme,” the erudite don, said
the FOIA is not just an abstract piece of legislation, as its
ideals are firmly rooted in the 1999 Constitution.

He maintained NYSC and other public institutions, owe it as a
duty to ensure proper organisation and maintenance of information
in a manner that facilities public access to such information
within seven days, while providing a written ‘Notice of Denial’
stating reasons and the basis for the denial in accordance with the
Act.

“The Act is comprised of 32 sections dealing with various
aspects such as rights of access to records, the procedure for
making requests for information, circumstances under which requests
can be granted or refused, exemptions, judicial review and the
Attorney General’s oversight responsibility,” he said.

Prof. Akper, explained that the FOI Act seeks to make public
records and information freely available, saying the idea behind
its enactment is to promote open government so as to engender
transparency and accountability in government business.

“To ensure that the enjoyment of the right to information
established under the Act is fully protected, the Act imbues the
applicant with the right to institute proceedings in the court to
compel compliance with the provisions of the Act.

Welcoming guests and the trainees, Mrs. Adenike Adeyemi, NYSC
Director of Press and Public Relations, asserted that FOIA confers
on the public a rare opportunity and privilege to request for and
receive information on specific issues of concern.

“The NYSC has since keyed into this policy of government, having
appointed Desk Officers for the Scheme who coordinate the policy of
the FOIA, both in the National Directorate Headquarters, Abuja and
the 36 State/FCT Secretariats. We also have FOI Community
Development Service groups for Corps Members who assist in
sensitizing the public on the spirit and letters of the FOI
Act.

“It is gratifying to state that the FOIA Desk Officers’ Workshop
has become a yearly event where the Desk Officers gather to be
refreshed with the FOI current trends and innovations. The training
provides them with the requisite platform to interact and rub minds
with one another on the challenges they face in the course of
carrying out their duties. Beyond that, the workshop provides us
with the opportunity for self-evaluation and feedback mechanism,
all geared towards improved service delivery,” added Mrs.
Adeyemi.

She appreciated the NYSC DG for ensuring that the workshop is
accorded the prime importance it deserves and personally attending
the event’s opening ceremony.

By PRNigeria