On Monday, White House Press Secretary John Earnest said that it is probable that some of the unaccompanied immigrant children caught crossing the border will be permitted to stay in the U.S.

"These children will -- and other immigrants who are attempting to enter the country without documentation -- will go through the immigration process, and that means their claims of asylum will be considered by an immigration judge and by asylum officials," Earnest said, according to The Hill.

A 2008 law grants some minors the right to an "automatic asylum hearing."

"What that means is ... if an immigration judge determines that they face a credible threat of death upon their return to their home country, then, again, I'm not an immigration judge, but it is likely that the immigration judge will find that that person should be granted humanitarian relief," Earnest said.

According to Fox News Latino, 57,000 unaccompanied minors, mostly from El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, have been caught at the border since October, and just 1,254 had been deported back to their home country by the end of June. The website cites an anonymous "law enforcement official."

An asylum-seeker is one who has entered the U.S. and has a "well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality or political beliefs," U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees officials explained to The Associated Press earlier this month. Accordingly, the individual who meets this definition would qualify for international protection, according to the UNHCR website. The U.S. decides if the person is granted asylum.

According to David Simmons, an immigration attorney and University of Denver law professor, most of the Central American minors "cannot prove they qualify for asylum after entering the U.S." despite being forced into gangs.

"If you're a victim of gang violence, you haven't been singled out for political persecution," he told AP. "It may be a very good reason to get out of your country, but it's not political persecution."
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Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @ScharHar.

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