(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The whistleblower who exposed the Biden administration for allowing migrant children to be sent to MS-13 gang affiliates has sued the Department of Health and Human Services for reneging on a settlement they allegedly agreed to earlier this year.
HHS whistleblower Tara Rodas said in her lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in federal court, that she first reported unaccompanied migrant children being sent to MS-13-affiliated sponsors in September 2021. Within 20 days, she was removed from her job.
The whistleblower who revealed that unaccompanied migrant children were being sent to MS-13 gang affiliates has sued the HHS for allegedly reneging on a settlement agreement.
Court filing from @SeamusHughes https://t.co/Xxeb7LZVni pic.twitter.com/WwtBjCwebN
— Ken Silva (@JD_Cashless) June 19, 2026
Rodas would go on to testify to Congress and provide records to Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, that supported her allegations.
According to the records, which were released by Grassley in 2024, in September 2021 the HHS sent one female unaccompanied minor to a sponsor who had a romantic partnership with an MS-13 gang member. Then, the HHS also sent the same sponsor’s unaccompanied minor son to the same household.
“The boy’s father was an official member of the MS-13 gang and had received a lengthy prison sentence for gang-related crimes,” Grassley said in a press release.
According to the records and whistleblower testimony, HHS again rejected staff members’ concerns when transferring both minors to the MS-13 home. The records also show that immigration case managers felt intimidated when processing the MS-13-connected migrants.
In January, Rodas began negotiating with the Trump administration to settle claims of whistleblower retaliation. According to her lawsuit, the parties struck an agreement by Jan. 20.
“Then, three months later after long delay and repeated representations that they were working on the written settlement agreement memorializing the terms, HHS took it back,” her lawsuit says.
“On March 5, 2026, to Ms. Rodas’ surprise, HHS informed Ms. Rodas that the material terms previously agreed upon during mediation were ‘off the table’ and that HHS intended to propose materially different settlement terms.”
Rodas seeks a court order enforcing the original terms of her settlement agreement, as well as legal fees and other costs associated with her lawsuit.
“This is a case about what happens when a federal employee tells the truth about children in danger—and the government spends years making her regret it,” she said.
The HHS has yet to respond to her complaint, which was first reported by Court Watch.
Ken Silva is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/jd_cashless.
