Groups: Migrants told to wait in Mexico faced 'bait, switch'

TIJUANA, Mexico (AP) — A Peruvian family that waited for six months at the Mexican border finally got their chance to make their case for U.S. asylum Thursday. But because they waited there as officials recommended, they face a new reality: Anyone who traveled through a third country and is seeking asylum after July 16 will be denied.

If they had sneaked in illegally when they arrived in Tijuana, they would have escaped the Trump administration's partial asylum ban.

"The family wanted to do it the way it's supposed to be done," said Luz Bertila Zazueta, 75, who arranged free lodging for them and joined neighbors in ensuring they had enough food.

The Southern Poverty Law Center and other advocacy groups asked a judge Thursday to prohibit the government from applying the new restrictions to anyone who appeared at an official border crossing to claim asylum before the policy was announced on July 16.

The government played "bait and switch" by instructing migrants to wait in Mexico for an opportunity to apply for asylum before imposing sharp restrictions on their eligibility, attorneys said in a court filing.

It is difficult to know how many people fall into that category, but the groups estimate that 26,000 people are on waiting lists in Mexican border cities to make an initial claim for U.S. asylum. The Associated Press counted 19,000 in just four cities in late July, including 10,000 in Tijuana alone.

The Justice Department declined to comment on the court filing, which is part of a lawsuit addressing two key practices that have left would-be asylum seekers frustrated and deflated.

One, known officially as "metering," has sharply limited the number of asylum seekers accepted each day at U.S.-Mexico border crossings since spring 2018. The administration says the...