Judge denies Minnesota bid to keep ICE agent jailed in Texas
Judge to rule on Minnesota-Texas battle over ICE agent
A federal judge is expected to rule whether Texas must extradite ICE officer Christian Castro to Minnesota, where he faces assault and false reporting charges stemming from a January shooting. Minnesota is asking the court to keep Castro in custody and force Gov. Greg Abbott to extradite him, while Texas argues Abbott needs more time to investigate. Castro's 90-day pre-extradition detention period expires Thursday, potentially allowing Texas to release him.
(FOX 9) - A judge has denied an attempt by Minnesota officials to block the release of the ICE agent charged in a January shooting in Minneapolis as the state battles with Texas Governor Greg Abbott over the agent's extradition.
Restraining order denied
What we know:
Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr. denied Attorney General Keith Ellison's petition for a temporary restraining order that would have kept ICE agent Christian Castro in Cameron County Jail amid an extradition battle between Texas and Minnesota.
Minnesota is trying to force Texas Governor Greg Abbott to move forward with the extradition process. Gov. Abbott argued in court documents he is awaiting a determination from his Secretary of State and doesn't want to move forward with the extradition until he receives that.
What's next:
Castro is expected to be released from Cameron County Jail on Thursday. Under Texas law, people being held for extradition can only be detained for 90 days. Castro has been in Cameron County Jail since late May.
Minnesota officials have worried that Castro could be a flight risk, saying he has been speaking with a woman in Mexico.
Big picture view:
The judge did not make a decision on whether Castro should ultimately be extradited to Minnesota.
Castro charged in Minneapolis shooting
Local perspective:
Christian Castro is charged with shooting and injuring a man in Minneapolis during Operation Metro Surge. He faces four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime in connection with the on-duty shooting that wounded a man back in January.
Castro initially claimed that he was attacked with a shovel and broom before he fired his service weapon. However, video evidence underlined Castro's story.
After surveillance video showing the shooting became public, the U.S. Attorney's Office said it was investigating the matter and DHS officials condemned the false statements.
"Lying under oath is a serious federal offense," a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said at the time. "Violations of this sacred sworn oath will not be tolerated."
Big picture view:
On Tuesday morning, CNN reported that the Justice Department was now considering its own charges against Castro for the shooting.
The CNN report cited a "source familiar with the deliberations and a DOJ spokeswoman." However, in an official statement, a DOJ spokesperson said no decision had been made. The spokesperson did confirm "conversations" about the case had been held between the DOJ's civil rights division and Minnesota prosecutors.
The Source: Court documents and past FOX 9 reporting.