Operation Lone Star Defense

Fall 2021 justice in action

In a few short weeks this summer, TRLA took on more than 500 new clients from at least 13 countries. Their mix of languages includes Spanish, Nahuatl, Garifuna, French, Haitian Creole, Vili, and Wolof. Not many things can bring together such a diverse group of people, but U.S. Border politics has proven to be one of them.

All but a handful of our clients have been charged simply with trespassing as they crossed onto the undeveloped, unfenced riverbank within two Texas border counties, Val Verde and Kinney. The arrests are part of Texas’s ongoing "Operation Lone Star." The state, ignoring international conventions and federal law allowing migrants to request asylum, is spending billions of dollars installing fencing and deploying state police to arrest refugees from all over the world into Texas — seeking a better life.

Once arrested, each is taken to a tent in a parking lot of the sheriff's offices in Del Rio. There they await their turn to enter a trailer to be advised of the charges against them and the amount of their cash bail — an amount they cannot possibly pay. After that, they are bused more than 100 miles away to the Briscoe Prison Unit in Dilley, Texas, run by the state for convicted felons. At Briscoe, they endure the hardships of prison life for a crime that no police officer or prosecutor would dare attempt to charge. In other words, punishment first, then perhaps months later, a trial.

TRLA responded to a request from the Texas Indigent Defense Commission to represent these refugees and migrants because only eight local defense attorneys were initially willing to take the cases. These clients are charged with trespassing, most for walking on unfenced land adjoining the Rio Grande. TRLA's involvement has grown as dozens more are being arrested daily, with no end in sight.

Usually, undocumented defendants must be given what's known as Padilla advice, which is Supreme Court-mandated immigration counsel and advice that defendants should be given before taking any plea bargain. As you may know, TRLA’s Public Defender Program has represented defendants in many rural counties for more than 15 years, so we are more than a little experienced in criminal defense as it relates to immigration law. However, these criminal charges are unique (in addition to pointless and cruel). The majority of the defendants we have seen qualify for asylum under federal and international law, and therefore have the right to enter the country to make a request, even outside a standard port of entry. It seems our state law enforcement officers are sworn only to enforce some laws but not others for people from unfavored countries.

While TRLA is uniquely situated to assist these clients, their cases require far more time to investigate and prepare than a routine misdemeanor. Our efforts have been worth it as many of the trespass charges have been dismissed by prosecutors based on the asylum defense. However, once our clients are released from prison -- either because of a plea, bail, or dropped charges -- federal immigration officials take it from there. And that landscape is just as complex.

While we are receiving funding from the state to provide a defense for our clients as required by the Constitution, we are asking for your support to ensure first-class representation for people who are in their most vulnerable moments who have suffered enough.

Your donation will make the difference.