Operation Lone Star

Spc. Bishop E. Evans, a 22-year-old field artilleryman from Arlington, joined the Texas Army National Guard in 2019. Full Story 

Declaring an “invasion” under the U.S. Constitution is an incendiary idea that would spark immediate court challenges given that immigration law enforcement is a federal responsibility. Full Story 

The soldier, Bishop E. Evans, went missing Friday morning after he jumped into the river near Eagle Pass. On Sunday, the Texas Military Department reported the search was still ongoing. Full Story 

Since 2005, Texas Govs. Rick Perry and Greg Abbott have launched a multitude of widely publicized and costly border initiatives, which usually kicked off during their reelection campaigns or while they were considering bids for higher office. Full Story 

The brigadier general steps down from commanding Operation Lone Star’s military efforts after five months. Full Story 

Trucks delivering products from Mexico are facing hourslong waits at ports of entry. Full Story 

Abbott said he’s responding to the Biden administration announcement that it will lift a pandemic-era emergency health order that allowed immigration authorities to turn away migrants at the border, even those seeking asylum. Full Story 

Texas Military Department leaders say they’ve addressed many of the issues that arose late last year when the mission ramped up to 10,000 service members — but more money is needed to run the mission at its current pace. Full Story 

The largest share of Operation Lone Star arrests were of people accused only of trespassing on private property. Many spend months in prison, but the strategy does not appear to have slowed immigration. Full Story 

The governor has ordered thousands of state troopers and National Guard members to the border since last year. Here’s what you need to know about the initiative. Full Story 

Months after the problems became apparent, migrants are still being kept in prison in violation of state laws under Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security crackdown. Full Story 

The departure of three top officials in a week signals that officials may be looking to make changes to the heavily criticized mission. A soldier leading a unionization effort welcomed the moves. Full Story 

The dispatching of troops to the sprawling private ranches, far from the border, raises questions about the use of National Guard troops, who have widely decried the mission as aimless, political and oversized, as the cost of the effort has already ballooned to $2 billion a year. Full Story 

Maj. Gen. Thomas M. Suelzer will take over as the military department’s new leader. He replaces Maj. Gen. Tracy Norris, who was criticized for her handling of Operation Lone Star, as adjutant general of the Texas Military Department. Full Story 

The county is the most populous to embrace the Republican governor’s “catch-and-jail” policy to arrest people accused of crossing the border illegally for state crimes, including trespassing. Full Story 

Frustration, anxiety and anger prevailed in the survey responses obtained by the The Texas Tribune and Military Times. The survey includes responses from nearly 250 members of Task Force South, one of six units that fall under the umbrella of Operation Lone Star. Full Story 

The governor has sent waves of troops to the border as Guard officials scramble to execute a massive mobilization that would normally take months to plan. Some Guard members say the operation has set back their income, education and well-being. Full Story 

A legal defense group is asking Travis County courts to throw out the arrests of hundreds of migrants swept up in the governor’s border initiative. The case is expected to draw in the Texas attorney general and address whether Gov. Greg Abbott’s plan is unconstitutional. Full Story 

A Travis County judge Thursday tossed out the trespassing charge of an Ecuadorian man who said he came to the United States seeking asylum. His lawyers argued that the governor’s directive to arrest migrants on state charges unconstitutionally usurps federal immigration law. Full Story 

The call for action from Texas Democrats comes as another service member based in the city of Pharr survived a suicide attempt on Sunday, according to an incident report obtained by Army Times and The Texas Tribune. Full Story