Texas authorities have jailed thousands of immigrants through an “arrest and jail” operation aimed at deterring illegal immigration along the state’s southern border.
Roughly 10,000 immigrants have been jailed on misdemeanor trespassing charges under state laws put into place in 2021, according to the Associated Press. The state plans to expand its law enforcement operations to combat the immigration crisis in March through legislation passed earlier this month.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed legislation in 2021 that allowed Texas law enforcement to arrest and hold immigrants who entered the country illegally on trespassing charges. The new rules aimed to curb the immigration crisis that has erupted at the U.S. southern border under President Joe Biden.
Abbott signed legislation on December 18 that would make entering the U.S. illegally a state violation, which would empower…
