In Texas Governor Greg Abbott promoted new immigration legislation that brings important changes for those who try to illegally cross the United States border since, among other guidelines, said action will be considered a state crime, so the state will be able to judge it directly without having to elevate it to federal jurisdiction. Although the rule is expected to take effect in March 2024, it is already having important effects.
Although the new legislation is aimed at discouraging the arrival of more immigrants to the Lone Star State, the reality is that The situation is causing more people to rush across the border into Texas. before state law begins to apply.
According to reports from various media, including The New York Post, For a few weeks now, a large number of people have been waiting on the border between Mexico and the United States trying to reach the North American nation, which is causing records and relocation of border patrol agents. in order to deal with the number of immigrants.
An immigrant interviewed by the media stated that he needs to get to the United States border quickly because, Once the new laws come into effect in Texas, there will be fewer chances of entering the country. As shared by the man of Venezuelan origin, although he had settled in a shelter for immigrants in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, when he found out about the entry into force of the new law he decided that he had to come to the United States. as soon as possible.
And it is that among the guidelines of the new legislation it is established that Texas agents may arrest anyone they suspect entered the United States illegally, to check their immigration status, and if they are found wanting, they will receive a court order to leave the country or face prosecution for minor crimes. This could lead them to jail or to pay a fine of up to US$2,000 and if they reoffend they will be charged with serious crimes.
Due to the situation, Record numbers of immigrants are being recorded on the border with the United States and Mexico. Federal authorities have reported that in an average of seven days they had registered more than 9,600 immigrants, which they claim is one of the highest numbers ever recorded. Even, according to FoxNews, Customs and border protection agents registered a record 12,600 migrants in twenty-four hours this week.
Despite the efforts of the immigration authorities, both in physical terms, that is, by placing fences and obstacles, and by issuing announcements to make it clear that arrival into the country via the Rio Grande is illegal, dozens of migrants are taking the risk and border patrol cannot cope with the situation.
Most people attempting to cross intend to apply for asylum once they are on U.S. territory. In fact, last month, the United States Immigration Court reached a historic backlog of more than 3,000,000 pending cases and, based on the current situation, they will only continue to accumulate.
Keys to the new Texas immigration law
As already mentioned, the main change of the new immigration law that Texas plans to implement, Starting in March 2024, it will allow illegal crossing to be considered a state crime, so it can be tried without taking it to federal court. Despite the above, the legislation will apply the same criteria as the federal government, so if it is the first time that a person tries to cross illegally into the United States, it will be considered a misdemeanor, but if the person repeats the penalties will be more severe.
However, there are still doubts regarding how the law could be applied because, for example, although Mexico has agreements with the United States to receive deportees, not particularly with the state of Texas, so when illegal immigrants are expelled, it is not clear what their fate will be.
Another reason why this legislation is generating so much controversy is that it has not been made clear what criteria the authorities will follow to detain people suspected of having crossed illegally.
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