“Texas’s new actions since the government’s filing demonstrate an escalation of the state’s measures to block Border Patrol’s ability to patrol or even to survey the border and be in a position to respond to emergencies,” Elizabeth B. Prelogar, the DOJ’ s solicitor general, wrote in the filing.
The DOJ is asking the Supreme Court to intervene in an ongoing legal battle between the state and the federal government and overrule a 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that prevents Border Patrol agents from cutting the concertina wire Texas has strung along the Rio Grande.
Texas troopers and National Guard members began to take “full control” of the 47-acre Shelby Park on Wednesday night, erecting concertina wire and fencing at the park to close off access to the public, the Texas Tribune reported.
Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas said he was told that the park would be closed indefinitely and the state government took the action to prevent immigrants from crossing into Texas.