Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is not letting up on his efforts to shut down an El Paso-based charity accused of aiding illegal border crossings.
On Monday, Paxton asked Texas’ Supreme Court to allow his office to continue its efforts in shutting down a Catholic charity known as Annunciation House.
Annunciation House is an organization based in El Paso that “operates several houses of hospitality” meant to assist the “migrant, refugee, and economically vulnerable peoples of the border region through hospitality, advocacy, and education.”
Paxton first applied for a temporary injunction to halt the organization’s activities in May, as reported by The Dallas Express. The application came after Paxton filed a lawsuit in February to revoke the organization’s registration to operate in Texas because it had violated the law by facilitating illegal entry to the United States, alien harboring, human smuggling, and operating a stash house.
In early July, an El Paso judge blocked Paxton’s efforts to shutter the charity based on allegations it was running a “stash house.”
“Earlier this year, after conducting an investigation, the Office of the Attorney General asked a district judge in El Paso to enjoin Annunciation House’s illegal operations. The judge concluded that it was ‘outrageous and intolerable’ that the Office of the Attorney General would even investigate this conduct,” said the Office of the Attorney General in a news release Monday.
“The judge falsely accused the Office of the Attorney General of investigating Annunciation House because of the organization’s ‘support for the Catholic Church.’ The judge’s assertion is not supported by any evidence, and the judge tellingly failed to identify any.”
Paxton took to X to say that he would continue his work to appeal the case.
“For too long, Annunciation House has flouted the law and contributed to the worsening illegal immigration crisis at Texas’s border with Mexico,” said Paxton. “I am appealing this case and will continue to vigorously enforce the law against any NGO engaging in criminal conduct.”
🚨BREAKING: Today, I have appealed our NGO lawsuit directly to the Texas Supreme Court. For too long, Annunciation House has flouted the law and contributed to the worsening illegal immigration crisis at Texas’s border with Mexico. I am appealing this case and will continue to… https://t.co/ZAHzQQvNqW
— Attorney General Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) July 15, 2024
Annunciation House’s executive director, Ruben Garcia, told The Texas Newsroom that the organization expected Paxton to try again.
“We were expecting that. We are very sorry that he is appealing the decision. Our hope had been that it would have been left alone and that we could continue on with our work,” Garcia said. “But obviously he has a different mindset.”
This lawsuit and injunction application come as the U.S. continues to deal with a crisis along the southern border due to an influx of illegal crossings into the U.S.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has reported more than 7.9 million encounters with illegal aliens along the southern border since President Joe Biden took office in January 2021.
According to data analyzed by The Center Square, over 12 million illegal aliens have crossed the border into the U.S. since 2021. This figure includes more than 241,000 apprehensions of illegal border crossers in May alone.
The Dallas Express contacted Annunciation House for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
