While the state guarantees law enforcement officers, like Department of Public Safety troopers, a $500,000 death benefit for their families if they die on duty, National Guard troops who stand shoulder to shoulder with those DPS officers on Operation Lone Star don’t have the same benefit.
Immigration
In-depth reporting on border issues, policies, communities, and the impact of immigration across the state, from The Texas Tribune.
Posted in
Immigration
Fire at migrant center in Mexico near El Paso kills at least 39
Mexico’s president said the fire started in the Ciudad Juárez center when migrants learned they would be deported and set fire to mattresses in protest. Twenty-nine injured migrants were sent to local hospitals.
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Politics
Homeland security chief calls Ted Cruz’s comments “revolting” in heated border hearing
“You’re willing to let children be raped to follow political orders,” Cruz told Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas at the hearing. “This is a crisis. It’s a disgrace.”
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Immigration
Two dead, several injured after migrants were found “suffocating” inside locked train car
Uvalde officials said U.S. Border Patrol responded to a 911 call alerting them about a group of people who were trapped for hours inside of a shipping container.
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Immigration
This rancher doesn’t want a border wall on his land. He fears Texas will build it anyway.
Anti-border wall activists are racing to find landowners along the Rio Grande before they sign contracts with the state.
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Texas Legislature 2023
“We just want parity”: Military groups call on lawmakers to give Operation Lone Star troops death benefits
Law enforcement officers who serve on Operation Lone Star get a $500,000 death benefit for their survivors if they die on duty. But National Guard troops on the same mission don’t get a dime from the state for their families if they die.
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Immigration
Hundreds of frustrated Venezuelan migrants block bridge linking El Paso and Juárez
Migrants rushed through the toll booths on the Juárez side of the bridge Sunday afternoon after rumors spread that the border was temporarily opened.
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Texas Legislature 2023
House unveils bill giving state authority to “repel” and return migrants crossing from Mexico
House Bill 20 by state Rep. Matt Schaefer, R-Tyler, would test the boundaries of the state’s ability to enforce immigration law, which courts have historically ruled falls under federal purview.
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Politics
U.S. Rep. Chip Roy offers warm reception to Biden border proposal as Democrats recoil
The Austin Republican’s tacit approval only adds fuel to the fire for Texas Democrats recoiling at the report that the Biden administration could detain asylum-seekers.
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Higher Education
UTEP gave research role to former Border Patrol official accused of sexual harassment
Tony Barker received an unpaid fellowship to make him “less risky” for other universities to hire him, emails show.