Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s controversial “catch and jail” border crackdown has left hundreds of migrants languishing for months in jail before they can even appear before a judge, according to reports.
The Texas Tribune reported retired judges and prosecutors from across Texas have been enlisted to help process a constant stream of new cases after migrants were arrested for trespass after crossing the border.
However, defense groups claim migrants in rural Kinney County may languish in prison for up to a year – the maximum jail time for a trespassing offense – before they are even able to appear in court virtually or to enter a plea.
The Tribune reports retired judges picked by the state have often agreed at the migrants’ first court hearings to release them from state custody on no-cost bonds as their criminal cases progress. Others who can afford to pay cash bonds are let out earlier. The released men are usually then transferred to federal immigration authorities. They are detained, deported, or released pending asylum hearings.
The Tribune reported a shakeup in Kinney County, which accounts for many of the trespassing arrests threatens even longer detentions. Migrants who cannot afford to post a cash bond could languish in jail indefinitely unless they plead guilty at an initial hearing.
The Tribune reported Kinney County Judge Tully Shahan canceled hearings for 20 men recently. He also dismissed the three retired judges who had been hearing the majority of...