Attorney General Sessions announces zero-tolerance policy separating 2,800+ children from families

Attorney General Jeff Sessions issues a memorandum directing federal prosecutors to adopt a "zero-tolerance" policy for all illegal border crossing offenses. Under the policy, all adults apprehended crossing the border illegally, including asylum seekers, are referred for federal criminal prosecution. Because children cannot be held in criminal custody with their parents, the policy results in the separation of at least 2,816 children from their families over six weeks. No centralized system is created to track separated children. After public outcry and leaked audio of crying children, Trump signs an executive order ending the policy on June 20, 2018, but hundreds of families remain separated for years.