Photo: Tribune News Service
Texas lawmakers are looking at legislation that would deny bail to certain illegal aliens.
HJR 16 would require judges to deny bail to illegal aliens charged with felony offenses. Last week, the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee viewed two Senate companion measures and two proposed constitutional amendments. The Senate already approved similar proposals last month.
Alexis Nungaray, the mother of 12-year-old Jocelyn, who was sexually assaulted and killed in Houston in 2024, testified in favor of HJR 16. Two Venezuela nationals are accused of committing the acts against her daughter.
“I had to go to a bond hearing for these individuals before I could even identify my daughter at the funeral home,” she told the committee. “I had to look these men in the face to make sure an adequate bond was applied for the charges that were presented."
Ammon Blair, a senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation and former U.S. Border Patrol agent, also testified in favor of HJR 16. He called the amendment a "a necessary proportional response to a genuine public safety crisis."
"One that falls squarely within Texas sovereign powers while complementing federal enforcement efforts,” he said.
According to Blair, there are nearly 650,000 criminal illegal aliens that have been released and are in ICE's non-detained docket. Over 14,000 are charged with homicide, 20,000 are charged with sexual assault and another 105,000 are charged with violent assault.
"These individuals should've remained in custody under federal law until removed, but due to prosecutorial discretion, laxed enforcement and bail practices within the courts, many have been released back into our communities," said Blair.
Blair said HJR 16 helps ensure that Texas law aligns with existing federal law and prevents serious criminals from being released when they should be detained.
“In practice, criminal illegal aliens have been released by Border Patrol and unfortunately, as a Border Patrol agent, I saw it firsthand,” Blair added. "Felony criminal aliens are a flight risk due to their unique circumstances and they have a strong incentive to flee to evade both criminal prosecution and immigration enforcement."
All four items are expected to be brought up again at a later date.