El Paso Joins Legal Fight Against Anti-Sanctuary Law: Your Texas Roundup

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“In my short time here, I have discovered that Texas is THE PLACE for tacos. Believe me, I’ve been trying them my whole life.”

—Dallas Cowboys rookie Taco Chartlon, who announced an endorsement deal with Texas-headquartered taco chain Taco Bueno on Tuesday, according to the Dallas Morning News. After the Cowboys landed the former University of Michigan star in the first round of the NFL draft in April, it was only a matter of time until the aptly named defensive end found himself repping any one of Texas’s taco makers. Enjoy what will hopefully be a lifetime of free namesakes, Taco.

BIG NEWS

Downtown El Paso, Texas, skyline.Thinkstock/Getty

More The Merrier
El Paso joined the legal battle against Senate Bill 4 on Tuesday after the city council voted unanimously to add itself to the lawsuit fighting the sanctuary cities law, according to the El Paso Times. The most populous border city in Texas became the latest addition to the lawsuit, which was initially filed by the border town of El Cenizo and eventually joined by Texas’s four major cities, along with several immigrant advocate groups and a handful of Texas counties, all of which are pitted against the state of Texas, Attorney General Ken Paxton, and President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice. The first hearing in the lawsuit was at a federal court in San Antonio on Monday, during which the plaintiffs argued that the law was unconstitutional and would result in unnecessary deportations and racial profiling among Hispanic Texans by local law enforcement agencies. In addition to effectively banning so-called “sanctuary cities,” SB 4 allows law enforcement officers to ask someone for their immigration papers for anyone they stop, detain, or arrest, and it also creates criminal penalties—including possible jail time—for local elected leaders who violate SB 4 and continue to enforce immigrant-friendly sanctuary policies. While El Paso isn’t officially designated a sanctuary city, SB 4 would still impact the way the city policies itself. “The unfunded mandate is expected to put additional strain on the El Paso Police Department, as SB 4 will add an extra requirement on the workforce that is already seeing a shortage in staff,” the city council said in a statement, according to the Texas Tribune. “The City of El Paso has a long successful history of working alongside our federal law enforcement partners, to add additional mandates on local resources will only limit officers from performing their public safety responsibilities.”

MEANWHILE, IN TEXAS

Show Stopper
Energy Secretary Rick Perry had his moment in the spotlight at the White House on Tuesday, and he really made the most of it. According to the Dallas Morning News, Perry spent 40 minutes holding court in the White House press room, and the charm was turned to the max. The former Texas governor cracked jokes, danced around tough questions, and defended President Donald Trump. During the televised briefing, Perry backed Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris climate accord and called for an “intellectual debate” on climate change, according to Politico. When asked whether Trump would accept an invitation to visit with the new president of France, Perry joked, “I would always look at an invitation to a party as a good thing,” but then added, “This is the country that wouldn’t buy Texas beef for some reason.”

Still Sick
The mother of “affluenza teen” Ethan Couch might be heading back to jail. According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, prosecutors filed on Tuesday a motion to revoke Tonya Couch’s bond, alleging she’d violated the terms of her bond. Tonya Couch is facing several charges after she and her son fled to Mexico after he bounced a probation appointment in 2015. Ethan Couch, now 20, killed four people in a drunk driving crash in Tarrant County in 2013, but controversially received just ten years of probation after his attorneys argued he was a victim of “affluenza,” and thus could not tell the difference between right and wrong. After the Couches were found in Mexico, Tonya was allowed to work at a bar while out on bond, despite not being able to have alcohol. But prosecutors allege she broke that alcohol rule and possessed a gun, which isn’t in line with the terms of her bond. Prosecutors now want Tonya to be held in custody until her trial in October.

Emotional Farewell
The U.S. Navy held a ceremony in Japan on Tuesday in remembrance of the sailors lost in the fatal USS Fitzgerald crash earlier this month, including Weslaco native Noe Hernandez. The 26-year-old gunner’s mate second class sailor was one of seven killed when the Fitzgerald collided with a Philippine container ship off the coast of Yokosuka, Japan, where a memorial service was held for crew members, families, and high-ranking Navy officers. Thousands of people lined the streets for the procession honoring the sailors. “You had people with all different uniforms, civilians and children waving flags with signs saying, ‘We support you, Fitz,'” Navy spokesman Commander Ron Flanders told the McAllen Monitor. “Japanese sailors from the other side of the base, which we call the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, were on-hand when the procession passed through this road, and we call it the Line of Honor. So these people were locked in a salute for the one-mile stretch of that route.” Hernandez’s wife and family from Weslaco attended the memorial service at the Naval base in Yokosuka. Back home, flags are flying at half-staff at state, county, and municipal buildings throughout the Rio Grande Valley and South Texas in honor of Hernandez.