Court Hands Texas 'Huge Win' on Border Wire

5th circuit says federal agents can't destroy razor wire state has placed along border
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 28, 2024 1:55 PM CST
Court: Feds Can't Destroy Razor Wire on Texas Border
Migrants wait to climb over concertina wire after they crossed the Rio Grande and entered the US from Mexico, Sept. 23, 2023, in Eagle Pass, Texas.   (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says a court ruling on razor wire along the border with Mexico is a "huge win" for the state. A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that the federal government can't destroy wire Texas authorities installed to deter migrants near Eagle Pass, the Texas Tribune reports. The ruling from the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans said the razor wire could stay in place as long as federal agents had "necessary access" to both sides of it, reports the New York Times.

The same court blocked Border Patrol agents from cutting through the wire last year, but the ruling was vacated by the Supreme Court. The Fifth Circuit granted Texas a limited preliminary injunction on Wednesday. "It was shocking to me that the federal government would go out of their way to cut razor wire to allow illegals to cross when we're just trying to protect our own land," Paxton told Newsmax.

Texas has continued adding razor wire to its 1,200-mile border with Mexico over the last year, the AP reports. The federal government argues that the wire impedes its ability to patrol the border. "We sued immediately when the federal government was observed destroying fences to let illegal aliens enter, and we've fought every step of the way for Texas sovereignty and security," Paxton said in a post on X. The Times notes that three of the Fifth Circuit's judges, including Stuart Kyle Duncan, who wrote Wednesday's ruling, are seen as possible Supreme Court nominees during President-elect Trump's second term. (More US-Mexico border stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X