A federal judge has issued a ruling directing Texas to dismantle the floating barriers in the Rio Grande and prohibiting the state from constructing new barriers or adding more buoys to the river.

This decision, outlined in a court filing on Wednesday, represents a legal victory for the Biden administration.

Judge David Alan Ezra has mandated that Texas must remove the barriers by September 15, at its own financial responsibility, CNN reported.

The border buoys have been a contentious immigration issue ever since their deployment in the Rio Grande as part of Governor Greg Abbott’s border security initiative, known as Operation Lone Star.

In July, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the state of Texas, contending that the buoys had been installed unlawfully and requesting the judge to compel their removal.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, alleged that Texas and Governor Abbott had violated the Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act by erecting a structure in U.S. waters without obtaining permission from the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

The Justice Department sought an injunction to prevent Texas from constructing additional barriers in the river. In response, the Republican governor argued that the buoys were intended to deter migrants from entering the state from Mexico.

Texas has promptly lodged an appeal against the judge’s order.

Written by staff