US judge blocks Texas law cracking down on illegal border crossings

(Reuters) -A federal judge in Texas on Thursday blocked the Republican-led state’s new law giving officials broad powers to arrest, prosecute and order the removal of people who illegally cross the U.S.-Mexico border.

U.S. District Judge David Ezra in Austin, Texas, agreed with the administration of Democratic President Joe Biden that the law known as SB4 interferes with the federal government’s powers to enforce U.S. immigration laws and the ability of migrants to apply for asylum and other humanitarian aid.

Ezra blocked the law, which was set to take effect March 5, pending the outcome of the Biden administration’s lawsuit.

SB4 would make it a state crime to illegally enter or re-enter Texas from a foreign country and gives state and local law enforcement the power to arrest and prosecute violators. It also allows state judges to order that individuals leave the country, with up to 20-year prison sentences for those who refuse to comply.

The state’s adoption of the law escalated an ongoing battle between Texas and the federal government over control of the southern border.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has blamed Biden for a record increase in illegal border crossings and says the state’s actions, including installing razor wire fencing at the border and a floating barrier in the Rio Grande river, were necessary because of the federal government’s inaction.

Abbott’s office, the office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and the U.S. Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

(Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)