Proposed Texas SB 4 law to arrest, deport migrants could impact El Paso jail, community

Senate Bill 4, a proposed new law making it a state crime to enter Texas illegally from Mexico, could potentially harm community relations, burden local taxpayers and strain county jails, El Paso County Sheriff Richard Wiles said.

The hotly debated SB 4 was passed by the Texas House earlier this week and Gov. Greg Abbott said he plans to sign SB 4 into law, which critics say could lead to racial profiling and feeds "anti-immigrant hysteria." Supporters say the law is needed to help stem an unrelenting crisis at the Texas border.

"We have pushed community policing and laws like these really work to erode that relationship we have with our community," Wiles said at a Thursday news conference inside the Downtown jail.

The new law could make communities less safe by potentially making crime victims and witnesses hesitant to talk to law enforcement officers if they, or a family member, do not have legal status, the sheriff said.

Senate Bill 4 would require people accused of illegally crossing the state's southern border outside of a port of entry to accept a magistrate judge's order to return to Mexico or face prosecution, with possible penalties ranging from a Class A misdemeanor to a second-degree felony.

Frustration with Washington, D.C.

SB 4 is a result of a "frustration from the lack of action out of Washington, D.C." growing for several years regarding the federal responsibility to protect the border and the lack of comprehensive immigration reform, Wiles said.

The law is not expected to change how El Paso County deputies operate and interact with residents daily, the sheriff said. Currently, deputies don't enforce federal immigration law and will call the U.S. Border Patrol if they need assistance dealing with persons who may be undocumented.

"I don't see a change in the way we do business" if SB 4 is signed into law, Wiles added.

The Sheriff's Office is busy with the day-to-day tasks of law enforcement, traffic crashes and other duties and doesn't have the training, staffing nor the time to be doing immigration enforcement, Wiles said.

SB 4 could impact El Paso jail capacity

The El Paso County Jail system could be impacted if agencies, such as the Texas Department of Public Safety, which over the years has become increasingly involved in border security efforts, start making large numbers of border trespassing arrests for what would now be a state crime.

El Paso County jail system has a total capacity for up to 2,880 inmates at the Downtown jail and the Jail Annex on the far East Side.

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The Downtown jail normally holds more than 1,000 inmates but is currently down 300 beds for a total capacity of about 700 because three floors are closed for infrastructure upgrades, including replacing sewer pipes, Wiles said. Capacity at the Jail Annex is 1,880.

If the jails are filled with inmates for state crimes, such as SB 4, it would have to stop housing federal inmates and the county would lose money, Wiles said. The jail is paid $101 a day per federal inmate. There are currently about 300 federal inmates at the county jails. The number fluctuates, going up to 500, 700 and even up to 1,000 at one time.

"They are shifting the cost of a federal issue to local taxpayers," Wiles said, adding that the costs for secure borders should be on every taxpayer in the nation, not just those who live along the border.

Texas Democrats blast 'dangerous' immigration bills

Supporters of SB4 and Senate Bill 3 say the legislation is necessary to address the immigration crisis at the border.

"SB 4 is the strongest border security bill Texas has ever passed," Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said in a statement. "SB 4 will require criminal background checks and the collection of fingerprints and photographs of those arrested for crossing the border illegally. The illegal crosser can be jailed or ordered by a magistrate to be returned to the border. If they violate the order and return to Texas, they will face even harsher penalties."

Opponents countered the bills are "dangerous" and "racist" anti-immigrant measures.

The Texas House of Representatives this week also approved Senate Bill 3, which allocates an additional $1.54 billion for Gov. Abbott's controversial Operation Lone Star and the construction of additional border walls, river buoys and other border infrastructure. The bill now heads back to the Senate before advancing to Abbott's desk for final approval.

State Sen. Cesar Blanco, D-El Paso, voted against both bills. "It's costly, ineffective, and inhumane. Border security is a federal responsibility. If Texas is going to be in the business of border security, we need to ensure transparent, and accountable use of taxpayer dollars," Blanco said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

More: Borderland Dems denounce Gov. Greg Abbott's concertina wire along New Mexico-Texas border

During a briefing on Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, and U.S. Rep. Greg Casar, D-Austin, blasted Abbott for "(playing) into the hands of the most extreme rightwing of his party."

Castro said, "Gov. Abbott is reaching a whole other level of anti-immigrant hysteria. We must call on the federal government and the Biden administration to block these extreme anti-immigrant … proposals."

The legislators are concerned that SB 4 essentially turns every law enforcement officer across Texas into an immigration officer without proper training. "They never signed up to be immigration officers," Castro said.

"It's not only going to hurt people," Castro said, "It's also going to hurt Texas businesses."

"It's damaging our relationship with Mexico," he added. "This is our number one trading partner … and Greg Abbott's actions are going to have a long-term impact on the economic relationship between our two nations."

Courts have ruled that the federal government has jurisdiction over immigration matters.

"You can't have 50 different immigration policies throughout the country," Castro said, adding that "(Abbott's) not trying to be somebody who's solving issues of immigration, he's trying to scare people …"

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Proposed Texas SB 4 law to arrest migrants could strain El Paso jail