Texas officers take “full control” of Eagle Pass park against city’s wishes
The city’s mayor was told the state operation to halt illegal border crossings would last indefinitely. Full Story
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Uriel J. García is an immigration reporter based in El Paso. Before joining the Tribune in 2021, he worked at the Arizona Republic where he covered police violence and immigration enforcement. He started his journalism career at the Santa Fe New Mexican where he covered the city's immigrant community and criminal justice issues. Originally from Mexico and a native Spanish speaker, Uriel grew up in Phoenix and graduated from Arizona State University.
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![The Texas Department of Public Safety closes Shelby Park in Eagle Pass on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024. 2024-01-11 07:29:40.727 -06:00 (1:29 PM CST)]()
Credit: Courtesy of Amerika Garcia Grewal/Border Vigil -
New York City sues bus companies that Texas hired to transport migrants
More than 33,000 migrants have arrived from Texas since August 2022. The city wants bus companies to pay more than $700 million. Full Story
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![Asylum seekers are transferred via city bus from the Port Authority bus terminal to a housing facility on May 14, 2023, in New York City, New York.]()
Credit: John Lamparski/Sipa USA via REUTERRS -
U.S. Justice Department sues Texas to halt new state law targeting illegal immigration
Senate Bill 4 allows Texas police to arrest immigrants who cross the border between ports of entry. The federal government says the law is unconstitutional. Full Story
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![Migrants seeking refuge in the U.S. cross the Rio Grande back into Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila, Mexico as others return to the U.S. carrying food supplies near Del Rio on Sept. 19, 2021.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Adrees Latif -
U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson visits border, demands that Biden administration crack down on illegal immigration
Johnson and 60 GOP House members went to Eagle Pass and said they won’t support financial aid for Ukraine or Israel unless the president backs their proposals to secure the border. Full Story
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![U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) takes questions following a press conference criticizing the Biden administration's immigration policies during a visit to a border town where migrants are arriving from Mexico to seek asylum, in Eagle Pass, Texas, U.S. January 3, 2024.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Kaylee Greenlee Beal -
Texas flies over 120 immigrants to Chicago in expansion of Gov. Greg Abbott’s busing plan
The flight comes after Chicago officials reportedly cracked down on buses coming from Texas with immigrant passengers. Since last year, Texas has bused over 80,000 immigrants to Democratic-led cities across the U.S. Full Story
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![Venezuelan migrants wait in line to board a bus to New York at the Centro de los Trabajadores Agricolas Fronterizos in El Paso, Texas, U.S., September 2, 2022.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Paul Ratje -
Immigrant rights groups sue Texas to halt new law allowing arrests of migrants
The lawsuit asks a judge to prevent the state from enforcing Senate Bill 4, which will authorize Texas police to arrest immigrants suspected of crossing the border illegally. Full Story
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![A group of migrants follow a state trooper vehicle after turning themselves in in Eagle Pass, Texas on July 29, 2023. They crossed through a cap in the concertina wire in the Urbina’s property. Some will be sent back after being arrested for trespassing private property without allowing them to go through the immigration process in the U.S.]()
Credit: Veronica G. Cardenas for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott signs bill making illegal immigration a state crime
The new law would authorize police to arrest people they suspect crossed the Rio Grande between ports of entry. Abbott also signed a bill earmarking more than $1 billion for more border barriers. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott signs six bills during a border security bill signing session at the state capitol in Austin on June 8, 2023. “Washington D.C. has failed to do its job to secure the border,” Abbott said. “As a result, Texas has had to take unprecedented steps in responding to the crisis caused by the Biden administration on the border, and in response the Texas legislature has stepped up to make sure that we will be able to more robustly respond.”]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Texas DPS absolves its leaders of wrongdoing after investigating migrant mistreatment claims
A DPS medic assigned to the border was so disturbed by what he saw that he blew the whistle. The agency now says its leaders on the ground didn’t break the law or violate agency policy. Full Story
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![Migrants are directed by a DPS Trooper around floating barrels covered in razor wire in the Rio Grande, on July 22, 2023, in Eagle Pass.]()
Credit: Angela Pizza/Corpus Christi Caller-Times via REUTERS -
Appeals court halts ruling that Border Patrol can legally cut Texas’ border concertina wire
Less than a week after a Del Rio-based federal judge ruled against Texas in the ongoing fight over the state’s razor wire, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals paused that decision while it reviews the case. Full Story
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![A U.S. Border Patrol agent cuts through razor wire to let in a group of asylum seekers who crossed the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass, Texas, U.S., September 28, 2023.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Brian Snyder -
Texas Legislature sends $1.54 billion bill for border barriers to Gov. Abbott
Senate Bill 3 would also appropriate $40 million for state troopers to patrol Colony Ridge, a housing development outside of Houston, and allow the state to send money to local jurisdictions to offset the cost of enforcing another immigration-related bill. Full Story
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![Texas National Guard and Texas DPS officers position themselves on the banks of the Rio Grande on Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2022, in El Paso. Over 400 personnel have been sent to this border sector by Governor Abbott after El Paso city officials declared a state of emergency.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune