Texas' expansion into immigration enforcement remains on hold as it winds its way through the federal courts.The law gives state and local police the authority to arrest people suspected of crossing into the U.S., but there are concerns about where to place them.

Tijuana

Texas is currently in the process of expanding its role in immigration enforcement, a move that is still pending as it makes its way through the federal court system. The law, if enacted, would bestow state and local police with the authority to detain individuals suspected of illegally crossing into the United States. However, the implementation of this law is met with logistical challenges, chiefly concerning the accommodation of those arrested under its provisions.



Major change coming at U.S, Mexico border

Terrell County, TX is sparsely populated and it occupies a big chunk of real estate along the U.S.-Mexico border. The sheriff says there's relatively little crime here, and even with that being said, he wants the ability to arrest people who've crossed over the river illegally between ports of entry because he thinks uncontrolled immigration is still a big problem here. Wide open spaces with scenery right out of a western. Terrell County is mostly high desert, cactus and grasslands, close to Big Bend National Park in far west Texas. So Terrell County is the 10th largest county in the state of Texas, which is comprised of just over 2,300 square miles. Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland patrols almost every day. His county touches nearly 50 miles of Mexican border. I tell people this area is the roughest stuff, this most unforgiving portion of 2,000 miles with Mexico. The United States and Mexico share an almost 2,000 mile long border and a good portion of it is topography like this. Little to no infrastructure, wild rugged beautiful landscapes and two nations no more than a stone's throw away from one another. We don't have people looking to surrender for asylum purposes or other political relief. What we encounter are people that want to cross the border illegally. Senate Bill 4 is now law in the state of Texas. Texas passed a controversial law known as SB4 that allows local law enforcement, like Sheriff Cleveland, to arrest people suspected of crossing the border illegally. Right now he can take people into custody only if he catches them trespassing in private property or in the vehicles of smugglers. Cleveland says his office was able to snare roughly 10 people per day crossing illegally in 2023 under his existing powers. He supports the new law as it would allow his deputies to question people about their citizenship and routine interactions like a traffic stop and arrest them if they suspect they are here illegally. The numbers of people crossing in far out Terrell County pale in comparison with other parts of the southwest border but the sheriff is still concerned. They want to sneak in the United States and then they want to make their trek north undetected. If they are detected and we encounter them out in the desert they typically run or abscond and then if we interdict them on the highway it usually turns into a high speed vehicle pursuit. In the midst of court wrangling the law was briefly in effect but in those nine hours the sheriff says he didn't arrest anyone under that authority. The law is on hold as the U.S. Justice Department is sued arguing it's unconstitutional saying Texas is trampling on the federal government's sole authority to enforce the nation's immigration laws. Again I support it but there are some questions that are left to be answered as far as some of that funding for resources. The county judge and the county sheriff fully support the implementation of SB4 however executing the law will be another challenge. For example the county jail here only has a capacity for seven people. We're financially strapped this county is already financially you know anything else that would be a unfunded mandate could cripple this county. County Judge Dale Carruthers says the entire county budget was about 1.8 million dollars. So we do have to have funding in order to be able to house inmates we're limited as far as that goes. If there were court appointed attorneys that were needed again those are unfunded mandates that we could not sustain unless we had some form of assistance. The county also depends on Texas's own border security program funding which will spend more than 11 billion dollars statewide over four years. Here in Terrell County the state effort pays for two additional sheriff's deputies but even then including the sheriff there's only five full-time deputies patrolling. In fact the sheriff welcomed the newest addition to his staff the day we followed him. Another set of eyes to scan thousands of square miles of Texas borderlands. John Moen, Scripps News, Sanderson, Texas.

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Canberra

Pressure mounts on Immigration Minister after latest detainee incident

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Ensenada

Fourth body discovered in Mexico search for Australian brothers

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Kyiv

Ukraine Invasion

U.K. allows its weapons to be used on Russian soil

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Surrey

Canada police charge three with murder of Sikh leader

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Wenchang

China launches mission to far side of the moon

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London

U.K.'s Labour claims big early win over Conservatives

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Ankara

Turkey to stop trade with Israel until Gaza ceasefire

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Paris

States doing less to support press freedom, says watchdog

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Arizona

Arizona governor signs bill repealing 1864 abortion ban

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Washington

Biden breaks silence on protests at University Campuses

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New York

More than 1,000 student protesters arrested across U.S.

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Zaporizhzhia

U.S. accuses Russia of using chemical weapons in Ukraine

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Council of the City of Sydney

Grave fears for brothers missing on Mexico surf trip

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Bogotá

Israel-Gaza War

Colombia ends diplomatic relations with Israel

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Jerusalem

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Tbilisi

Thousands protest against Georgia's 'foreign influence' bill

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The Hague

ICJ rejects measures over German arms exports to Israel

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Hainault

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