More than 20 people have been kicked out of the state’s emergency migrant-family shelter program in recent months for “inappropriate actions,” the Herald has learned.
The Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities recently sent 22 “separation from household” letters to those in the Emergency Assistance family shelter program — expelling them while referring them to individual adult homeless shelters.
The Herald obtained these ejection letters through a public records request after finding out that a 29-year-old man was reportedly booted from a hotel housing migrant families in Marlboro, as a 16-year-old girl staying at the hotel got a restraining order against him.
Of the 22 recent “separation from household” letters, 21 of them cited “inappropriate actions” in the migrant-family shelter program.
“The reason for the separate placement of (redacted name) is that it has come to our attention that you have taken some inappropriate actions that raise some concerns for the safety of the families currently in the EA program,” reads the boilerplate letter from Chris Thompson, undersecretary in the state’s Division of Housing Stabilization.
“These actions suggest a background that is not suitable for a program that house families,” the letter continues. “… I authorize (redacted name) to be referred separately to an individual adult homeless shelter. A list of individual adult homeless shelters is attached to this letter.”
The explanation for the 22nd person’s removal was blacked out.
“The reason for the separate placement of (redacted name) is based on (redacted),” that letter reads.
The emergency shelter system in Massachusetts houses more than 7,500 families, including migrants from other countries and local residents.
“This is very concerning,” Jessica Vaughan, of the Center for Immigration Studies, told the Herald about the number of people being kicked out of the family shelter program.
“It’s concerning for the communities where these people have been placed, and it’s concerning for the other migrants who are in these shelters,” Vaughan added. “When you have an open door policy at the border and a welcome mat in Massachusetts, you’re asking for problems.”
She noted that the border is so overwhelmed that federal authorities are not able to conduct meaningful vetting.
“They cannot be confident they’re identifying people who will cause problems when they get to their destinations,” Vaughan said.
When it comes to the separation letters referring people to individual adult homeless shelters, the state is “kicking the can down to somebody else,” she said.
“They should be reported to ICE, and ICE should be removing them,” Vaughan added.
After receiving the list of separation letters, the Herald reached out to Gov. Maura Healey’s administration about the safety and security of the shelter program.
“The safety and wellbeing of families in the Emergency Assistance program is a priority for the Administration,” said a spokesperson for the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities.
“EA residents are required to adhere to shelter rules and violation of these rules may result in termination from the EA program,” the state spokesperson added.
People who have received separation letters have been removed from the EA program due to violating the uniform shelter rules.
A few months ago, a migrant was accused of raping a disabled girl at a local shelter. The migrant child rape case involving 26-year-old Cory Alvarez sparked a Congressional inquiry and led to more Republican-fueled criticism of the emergency shelter system in Massachusetts.
Alvarez, a national from Haiti, is accused of raping a 15-year-old disabled girl at a state-run shelter in Rockland. He has been indicted by a Plymouth County grand jury for the alleged child rape at the shelter.
Alvarez, who entered the U.S. lawfully through a federal program and underwent two state sex offender checks, was found dangerous in March. He remains held without bail.
He was screened and vetted against national security and public safety databases when he entered the U.S. and no “derogatory information” was found, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
The Herald has been seeking information on the 29-year-old man being kicked out of the Holiday Inn in Marlboro, which has been providing shelter to 149 families.
When the Herald reached out to Marlboro Police about the man, a police spokesperson said, “We are unable to provide these reports due to an ongoing investigation involving a juvenile.”
When the Herald reached out to Marlboro District Court about the restraining order involving the man, a court spokesperson said the matter was impounded and not available for the public. Was this impounded because the restraining order involves a minor?
“Abuse preventions orders are public record unless a judge impounds them,” a court spokesperson responded. “We cannot give you any information about why the order was impounded.”
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