About 50 Immigrant Children Separated At Border Being Held In Chicago

CHICAGO (CBS) -- There are as many as 50 young immigrant boys from Brazil, separated from their parents, being held in Chicago.  Another family is seeking legal action to reunite a mother and son.

CBS 2's Roseanne Tellez reports cameras captured a happy reunion last week as Lidia Souza was reunited with her 9-year-old son Diogo.

10-year-old Diego, also from Brazil and taken from his mother at the border, is involved in a similar case.

Attorney Jesse Bless says both mothers came to Chicago last week hoping their children would be released.

"Was Diego's mother able to see her child here in Chicago?" CBS 2's Roseanne Tellez asked Bless.

"She did," the Bless responded. "It was a bittersweet ending to the week, to be honest, because we returned with only one child and two mothers. It was awful."

Bless says he thought the government would abide by the ruling that reunited Souza and Diogo. Instead, he will go back to Federal court in Chicago on Thursday, hoping to get Diego's release.

Two other cases will also go before a different judge on Thursday, involving a 9-year-old and 15-year-old, both Brazilian boys.

"We are aware of at least 50 more in Chicago – Brazilian boys who need to be released," Bless said.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel declined to comment about the children being held in Chicago, but says President Trump's roll-back of Zero Tolerance has created new problems.

The Mayor announced Tuesday that Chicago has joined three other major cities – New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco – in legal action against the federal government to protect kids separated from their parents.

"They are interning families in unlicensed facilities," Emanuel stated. "Four cities and the four mayors have stood up and said 'We don't believe that this should go forward.'"

Bless says he has learned that children separated from their parents were grouped by nationality and age. He says he also wants people to realize that after the happy reunions, the families deal with a long healing process.