The Department of Justice is threatening legal action against Texas over its recent measures to prevent immigrants from crossing the border. Both CNN and the Houston Chronicle have reported that the Justice Department sent a letter to Texas Governor Greg Abbott, warning that these actions raise humanitarian concerns and have not been authorized by the federal government. Texas has implemented strategies such as adding floating orange buoys with nets beneath them in the Rio Grande River to make it more difficult for migrants to swim or wade across. Additionally, razor wire has been installed in certain areas to deter undocumented immigrants from crossing.
Governor Abbott’s actions have stirred controversy. According to an internal Texas Department of Public Safety email obtained by the Dallas Morning News, a state trooper encountered a woman in distress due to a miscarriage, who was trapped in the razor wire. The trooper was also instructed to push migrants who successfully crossed the river back into it.
“The State of Texas’s actions violate federal law, raise humanitarian concerns, present serious risks to public safety and the environment, and may interfere with the federal government’s ability to carry out its official duties,” states the Department of Justice letter to Governor Abbott, as reported by CNN. The letter also highlights that federal law prohibits obstructions in U.S. rivers and building such obstructions without approval from the U.S. Army’s Corps of Engineers. A spokesperson from the Department of Justice confirmed to HuffPost that the agency sent Abbott a letter notifying him of their intent to pursue legal action regarding the unlawful construction of a floating barrier in the Rio Grande River.
In June, when Abbott unveiled what he named “Operation Lone Star,” he stated that the goal was to prevent migrants from reaching Texas and to turn them back. “We’re securing the border at the border,” the governor mentioned during a press conference. “What these buoys will allow us to do is to prevent people from even getting to the border.”
Despite the reduction in Southwest border crossing encounters in the last five months compared to the same period in 2022, as reported by U.S. Customs and Border Protection statistics, the new obstacles were implemented. Migrant flows typically follow seasonal patterns. Immigrant rights advocates have strongly criticized Operation Lone Star, calling it inhumane. Bob Libal, a Texas consultant with Human Rights Watch, stated in a recent statement, “State troopers are deliberately pushing people toward razor wire, heat exhaustion, and dangerous river currents knowing that they will suffer, be injured, and die.”
These measures have also faced scrutiny in Congress. On Friday, Representative Joaquin Castro (R-Texas) released a letter signed by over 80 House Democrats, urging the Justice Department to take legal action to halt Texas’s actions. The letter pointed out that Arizona Governor Doug Ducey (R) abandoned his plan for a makeshift border wall after a lawsuit from the Department of Justice, and Texas similarly failed to obtain permits before installing its barriers. “Operation Lone Star’s programs and policies, specifically the recent erection of razor wire or buoy walls, pose a huge danger to migrants and impede the ability of our border patrol offices to safely and humanely treat migrants as well as to comply with relevant federal and international laws,” the letter stated. “As Governor Abbott continues to escalate his efforts on the border, we urge you to take the above actions and stop this horrific abuse of power.”