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Article snippet: A federal judge ruled Friday that potentially thousands of migrant families who were separated at the southern border under the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy could be added to an existing class-action lawsuit. U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw had ordered the administration last year to reunite over 2,800 migrant children who were separated from their families at the border. That order applied to those separated after June 26. Sabraw's latest order finds that his decision applies to those detained as early as July 1, 2017. The ruling comes in light of reports that families could have been separated as early as July 2017 before the policy was officially announced. The decision allows potentially thousands of families who were separated in the 11-month gap to join the class-action lawsuit and sets up a hearing for later this month to determine if the Trump administration will have to identify the additional family members or even reunite them all. “The hallmark of a civilized society is measured by how it treats its people and those within its borders,” Sabraw wrote. “That Defendants may have to change course and undertake additional effort to address these issues does not render modification of the class definition unfair; it only serves to underscore the unquestionable importance of the effort and why it is necessary (and worthwhile). “In sum, that Plaintiffs were alerted to the existence of a handful of parents within this group, and that subseque... Link to the full article to read more