Kangaroo Courts? Judge Shopping? Oh My!
Legal Circus Continues, Now With an Austin Twist
Bring on the lions, tigers and bears, friends. The political circus surrounding Operation Lone Star is now threatening to eclipse the very human costs of the Texas Border Crisis.
We refer to, not only the plight of local ranchers— which received a new visitation from a fresh pair of eyes that we will showcase for you in just a moment— but also of course to the plight of the illegal aliens presently being held at the Dolph Briscoe Unit in Dilley, TX.
We’ll begin with the latest development, brought first to our attention by Jolie McCullough at the Texas Tribune— tracking a legal decision by a State district court Judge in Austin/Travis County.
By the time the first of our subscribers read this, the decision is probably a couple of days old— but not everyone has time to follow these things in the obsessive fashion it sometimes requires, please bear with us as we attempt to summarize it in a clear and fair manner.
Essentially, attorneys acting on behalf of an individual Ecuadorian man, facing trespassing charges as a result of Operation Lone Star, filed suit in Travis County. Seeking to have the case dismissed by that court, they allege that Operation Lone Star and trespassing charges filed in Kinney County are violating the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause.
This has to do with the fact that the Constitution places immigration and border control on the list of responsibilities held by the Federal Government. But, even to a casual observer, there seem to be a few reasons to object to this ruling.
Among them, is the fact that people being detained as part of Operation Lone Star aren’t being held on any sort of immigration charges— they’re being held on state trespassing charges. One imagines that attorneys for these illegal aliens will argue that the state trespassing charges are a thin pretext— a miniscule veneer, covering up the state’s meddling with immigration matters.
That will of course, be something for the courts to sort.
As Ms. McCullough’s piece points out, this opens the door to all kinds of individual challenges, potentially in all sorts of different locations. If you haven’t read her article, above, the attorneys behind the action say they chose to file in Travis County, to spare the overworked Kinney County judicial system. On the face of it, that seems a reasonable claim, but we were just talking about thin pretexts and miniscule veneers. Even the most sympathetic of observers would be hard-pressed to call this anything but a case of “judge shopping.” Judge shopping refers to the practice of filing actions with a judge that one presumes will be inclined to favor certain arguments. It’s no secret that Travis County is perhaps the most likely spot in Texas to find a judge that will decide in favor of illegal immigration. Complaints about the practice are perhaps valid— but it’s also something that is somewhat baked into the system. Complaining about it, is like complaining about a golf ball sitting in the ‘rough.’ Whatever happens— it’s in the game. You have to play it as it lies.
In this case, both the Governor, and the Attorney General are wading in:
There is a lot to unpack in these tweets. Attorney General Ken Paxton is referring to a “Soros Travis County District Attorney.” Jose Garza is the D-A for Travis County. We haven’t seen his campaign finance records, but Ken Paxton seems to be alleging that Garza is one of several District Attorneys around the country whose election was financed by right-wing bogeyman and left-leaning international financier George Soros. Many also presume Soros is also involved in funding illegal immigration.
Garza is also the same District Attorney presently accusing Paxton of violating public information laws. In this border case, Garza a self-described “progressive DA” who would normally represent the state, seemed to almost be representing the plaintiff, saying in so many words: “this is wrong,” with Judge Jan Soifer saying in so many words “Preach it!”
A private attorney had to be drafted to represent the interests of Kinney County and the rest of the State. His objections were largely ignored. Judge Soifer has a history of butting heads with Governor Greg Abbott— granting temporary restraining orders to people suing against certain past actions of his.
Presumably the next step in this matter will include some form of legal action by Kinney County. County Attorney Brent Smith has been quoted as saying he has no comment on pending legal matters.
It’s worth pointing out, that this action threatens to actually prolong the misery for those locked up in Dilley, as the Courts sort it all out. Some will say it’s worth it— for those illegal aliens who wish to avoid a guilty plea or trial, risking having trespassing convictions stuck on their records.
Stay tuned to this one friends. You’ll probably see something online, or in the newspapers before we can attempt dissecting it here.
Reporter Sydnie Henry, from the Texas Scorecard, has been quietly busy in Kinney County, judging by her recent output. A fresh set of eyes we’re mostly unfamiliar with— her latest piece focuses on the experience of Cole Hill, a rancher on the East side of the County over toward Uvalde.
We’ve been to his spread before— it’s a very popular location for illegal aliens, giving them a chance to walk around the Border Patrol checkpoint at the Uvalde/Kinney County line.
If you know someone that’s sort of out of touch on this issue— or thinks it’s no big deal— forward them her piece. Her description of the Hill family’s experience, trapped in their own home while illegal aliens try to kick the doors in, is a journalistically dry but riveting illustration of any family’s worst nightmare. It’s almost a post-apocalyptic thing to imagine.
We should point out, the Texas Scorecard is a rightward/libertarian leaning publication— just as the Texas Tribune, in the item previous, is unabashedly leftward leaning. Both publications seem to make an effort at objectivity.
It should be noted, just how tricky it has been for outside journalists to get interviews with area ranchers. One rancher we’ve spoken with, freely refers to himself and others nearby as being ‘Clannish.’ The word is generally a derogatory one— referring to people who prefer to exclude others outside their group.
It is what it is. In some cases, family-owned ranches in the area are going on a legacy of 3 or more generations of working the land and folks are watching the value of it plummet in the face of illegal immigration. It’s no exaggeration to say that this crisis threatens to ruin them. To take the legacy that their families have fought and in some cases literally bled for. Most folks are probably unable to imagine it, or even appreciate it, in this slave age of renting and gig economy lifestyles. Ranchers like Mr. Hill, Donna Schuster, the Conoly family and some others have been carrying the burden of speaking with reporters— sharing their stories, while the remainder stay quiet. Their stories are representative, but it may seem to some outsiders as though perhaps there isn’t some universal misery associated with this illegal traffic, and that it may be just something cooked up by a politically active and partisan group of folks. Ridiculous, we know. But, something worth considering for other Kinney County ranchers that may be avoiding the press.
And finally— an item from our associates at the 830 Times in Del Rio, Texas, touching upon the troubles of Texas Military personnel assigned to the Border. A soldier there is facing charges— arrested after allegedly going out to his car, getting a gun, and walking back into the White Horse Lounge and pointing it at another patron.
No word yet if that patron was another soldier, or a civilian. Reporters wanting to find that out will have to call around to the various courts in Val Verde County Monday, to try and sort it out. The reporting suggests the soldier was incredibly inebriated.
The White Horse Lounge is a bar inside the local Ramada Inn. It would be a little misleading to call it a major night spot in Del Rio. Del Rio doesn’t have any major night spots to speak of, really. A legacy of simpler times, when folks would go across to Ciudad Acuña to party and play. In the last 10 years or so as the border’s become more volatile, almost all of that cross border nightlife has expired, but there really hasn’t been any corresponding growth in the nightclub business in Del Rio. But we digress.
Pile this incident at the White Horse Lounge, on top of others we’ve been hearing of, including reports of Del Rio-area law-enforcement arresting soldiers inside their own camp on narcotics and prostitution charges. As for Kinney County, while there isn’t a large contingent of Texas Military forces here, there are a fair number of State Guardsmen helping out at the Sheriff’s office, and another contingent of National Guardsmen with paralegal training helping out at the Courthouse— so far there have been no reported troubles with either group.
So far, reports of soldiers suiciding have been mostly limited to the Rio Grande valley, but based on conversations we’ve had and others we’ve been privy to, there’s no shortage of troops in Val Verde County and Maverick County who also have negative feelings about the deployment.
For the most part, they seem to feel it is a waste of their time. It’s hard to argue the point. Some of what they’re being used for can be chalked up to public relations and security theatre. Noisome, objectionable, boring stuff. But— there is a value to security theatre. We all may hate it, once we’re aware of it— but if it didn’t serve a valuable purpose, no one would bother with it. Does that valuable purpose actually promote safety? Or is it just valuable for political and public relations’ sake? Debatable. One cannot deny, it would be easier to ask these soldiers to make this sacrifice if the state had its act together. No professional army in history has ever performed well without getting paid.
The Texas Tribune, again, breaks down the latest news on this front. They point out a group of Texas congressmen who are calling for an inspector-general investigation into the persistent pay issues and Operation Lone Star as a whole. All are Democrats. Among them is U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar, who represents a deep strip of South Texas, running all the way from Webb County up to the outskirts of Northern San Antonio and Hays County.
Cuellar is well known to us, from his days as a State Representative at the Legislature in Austin. He’s been back and forth on both sides of the border crisis. In these partisan times, it might seem like somewhat naive or inconsistent behavior. Others might call it the sort of nuanced approach that acknowledges the border is in crisis— people need help— and also, soldiers need to get paid. Even so, the list of lawmakers signing on to the effort generally reads like a who’s who of partisan hackery.
Thanks for reading— we hope it’s been informative, or at least illustrative. Enjoy the weekend, we’re hitting the January stretch, it’ll be Valentine’s Day before you know it. Find some chocolate. Get ready. Don’t let your sweetheart catch you with no plans, or hasty plans. If you haven’t been, consider a visit to the Qualia Winery in Del Rio. Open for business since 1883, even during Prohibition— the winery is one of those under-appreciated area features. Even if you know it well— odds are there’s been some changes since your last visit.
As always, we should make note for new readers of our employment with the Kinney County Sheriff’s Office. Our efforts and opinions expressed here are entirely our own, and not illustrative of official County policy.