SAN DIEGO (AP) — A federal judge has ruled that the U.S. government must return three families adversely affected by the Trump administration's controversial policy of separating parents from their children at the border. The decision was made on Thursday and accused the administration of employing "lies, deception, and coercion" in the deportation processes of these families.

The ruling found that the deported families should have been allowed to stay in the United States based on the terms of a legal settlement regarding the separation of approximately 6,000 children from their parents in 2018. Each mother involved had been granted permission to remain in the U.S. until 2027 under humanitarian parole.

U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw, presiding in San Diego, mandated that the government must also cover the travel expenses incurred for their return. The case highlighted one woman's experience, in which she and her three children—including a 6-year-old U.S. citizen—were deported to Honduras in July after facing repeated demands to check in with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over a two-month span. This process, she noted, culminated in her losing her job.

Judge Sabraw explicitly rejected the government’s defense that the family had left the U.S. of their own volition. The woman recounted in court documents that ICE agents visited her residence, instructing her to sign a document consenting to her departure—a request she refused. She described her situation, stating, "This did not make any difference to these officers. They took me and my children to a motel and removed my ankle monitor. They detained us for three days and then removed us to Honduras."

The other two families involved in the case, whose identities were not disclosed, exhibited similar circumstances. Judge Sabraw concluded that "each of the removals was unlawful, and absent the removals, these families would still be in the United States and have access to the benefits and resources they are entitled to."

Lee Gelernt, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) representing the families, praised the court's decision. He remarked, "The Trump administration has never acknowledged the illegality or gratuitous cruelty of the initial family separation policy and now has started re-deporting and re-separating these same families. The Court put its foot down and not only ordered the families' return but did so at government expense."

The Homeland Security and Justice departments had not responded to requests for comments following the ruling. This legal matter arises from the previous "zero-tolerance" policy, which resulted in parents being separated from their children to face criminal charges for illegal border crossings. Judge Sabraw had previously ordered an end to these separations in June 2018, shortly after Trump himself halted the policy due to immense international pressure. The existing settlement prohibits such separations until 2031.

In light of this ruling, the families affected by the separation policy are set to return to the U.S. with the support of federal authorities, underscoring ongoing challenges related to immigration policies and practices in the country.