After more than three weeks in jail, a trespassing charge against the man was dropped because state troopers shouldn’t have arrested him under Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security push. He wound up in bureaucratic limbo for days as federal agencies passed the responsibility for resolving his immigration status.
Department of Public Safety
Posted in
Coronavirus in Texas
Federal judge extends order blocking Gov. Greg Abbott’s directive for law enforcement to pull over vehicles transporting migrants
Abbott instructed state troopers to pull over civilian drivers transporting migrants who may be infected with COVID-19 and seize vehicles if they don’t comply.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
The first migrants arrested in Gov. Greg Abbott’s border crackdown have served their time. Federal officials will decide what happens next.
The Texas governor has derided federal immigration policy as “catch and release.” But unless federal authorities now take them into custody, the migrants Abbott ordered state troopers to arrest could soon be freed.
Posted in
Operation Lone Star
Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security initiative rolls out with confusion, missteps and a whole lot of state troopers in Val Verde County
The governor’s decision to go all in on border security is evolving rapidly, and many of those on the ground don’t know how it’s going to work.
Posted in
Operation Lone Star
Converted Texas prison gets first immigrant detainees as Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security effort ramps up
Border-crossing immigrants are being arrested by Texas troopers on state charges like trespassing, and they’re starting to trickle into a prison emptied to house them.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
At least 1 dead after multiple people shot in Bryan, Texas
The shootings began at Kent Moore Cabinets, and one Texas Department of Public Safety trooper who was later shot is in serious, but stable condition. The shooting occurred the same day that President Joe Biden released a list of executive orders to address gun violence.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas Capitol to close Saturday, before planned armed protests of Joe Biden’s inauguration
The FBI reportedly warned law enforcement agencies in all 50 states of possibly armed protests after the U.S. Capitol was besieged by pro-Trump rioters.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2021
Texas legislative session begins with heavy security presence following U.S. Capitol riot
Lawmakers gathered for the start of the 140-day session Tuesday as the coronavirus continues to rage in Texas.
Posted in
State Government
Texas closes its Capitol building following chaos in Washington, D.C.
“The Capitol and Capitol Complex are closed to the public effective immediately,” said Freeman Martin, the Texas Department of Public Safety’s deputy director of homeland security.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Gov. Abbott is sending state police to help combat violent crime in Dallas. A similar effort last year proved controversial.
Dallas’ mayor said he welcomes the help from state law enforcement after a spate of shootings sent the city’s 2020 murder tally past last year’s total.
