In a harsh decision on Tuesday, the judge condemned Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s attempts to close one of the biggest and oldest migrant shelters on the American-Mexico border. The Republican accused Paxton of engaging in “outrageous” behavior because he believed the shelter encouraged people to enter the country illegally.
The El Paso shelter’s fundamental rights were infringed, according to Judge Francisco X. Dominguez, by Paxton’s attempts to impose a subpoena for the data of migrants who have been served at Annunciation House in previous years. His decision shields the shelter from what Dominguez described as “harassment and overreaching” on the part of Paxton’s office and stops Paxton from requesting the documents.
Requests for comment from Paxton’s office went unanswered, although the state is anticipated to file an appeal.
In recent months, Paxton’s office has requested information from a number of charitable organizations that assist migrants, including Annunciation House. In May, Team Brownsville—which provides aid to migrants dropped down by federal officials in Brownsville—received a letter requesting documentation. In an attempt to obtain testimony, Paxton is also suing Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley.
According to Dominguez’s letter, he had previously voiced concern that Paxton’s office had failed to specify which statutes Annunciation House was allegedly in violation of.
“The record before this Court makes clear that the Texas Attorney General’s use of the request to examine documents from Annunciation House was a pretext to justify its harassment of Annunciation House employees and the persons seeking refuge,” he wrote. “In fact, the record before the Court now establishes that the Attorney General was seeking evidence of alleged criminal activity all along. This is outrageous and intolerable.”
Paxton claimed that Annunciation House was running a stash house, enabling human smuggling, and illegal immigration by housing individuals regardless of their immigration status.
Early in February, state representatives paid a visit to the El Paso shelter and demanded urgent access to all information, including medical and immigration paperwork, belonging to migrants who had received treatment there since 2022. The Catholic group Annunciation House, which is in charge of a network of shelters, stated that while they were eager to cooperate, they needed more time to figure out what information they could lawfully disclose without going against the constitutional rights of their customers.
The day after seeking access, investigators were not permitted to enter the shelter in order to obtain records. According to Annunciation House’s lawyer, Jerry Wesevich, companies are shielded from arbitrary government searches and seizures by the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution.
Wesevich acknowledged the ruling’s potential effects on other groups while expressing relief. He asked Paxton why he thought the shelter should close.
“All that’s going to mean is more people on El Paso streets. Who does that help? All it does is provide a narrative of chaos on the border, which is a narrative that some people politically want to promote,” Wesevich stated.
