Supreme Court Allows Border Patrol to Resume Cutting Texas Razor Wire Aimed at Deterring Illegal Crossings

AUSTIN, Texas (The Dallas Morning News/TNS/Hamodia) — Reversing an injunction by a federal appellate court, the U.S. Supreme Court said Monday that Border Patrol agents can resume removing or destroying razor wire Texas has installed along the U.S-Mexico border.

The ruling was a blow to Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who have escalated their fight with the federal government over disagreements on President Joe Biden’s immigration policies.

Monday’s 5-4 ruling reverses an injunction by the New Orleans-based Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in a lawsuit filed by Paxton last year that accused the federal government of illegally destroying state property when federal agents cut through razor wiring installed at the southern border.

Conservative Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas disagreed with vacating the lower court’s order. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett, though conservative themselves, supported the decision.

Recently, the Texas Military Department took control of a city-owned park in Eagle Pass and denied Border Patrol agents access to the area. The 50-acre park sits on the banks of the Rio Grande. It’s unclear how Monday’s ruling will impact Texas’ operations at the park.