International
The United States Supreme Court gives Texas free rein to arrest and expel migrants
The Supreme Court of Justice ruled on Tuesday in favor of the state of Texas allowing it to enter into force of a law that allows the Police to arrest and expel migrants suspected of irregularly entering the United States.
The legislation, known as SB4, may enter into force while the arguments of a lawsuit filed by the Government of President Joe Biden and organizations defending migrants are heard.
The case reached the highest court after a legal battle undertaken by the Biden Administration and advocates of immigrants led by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), who allege that the initiative is unconstitutional.
The plaintiffs had asked the Supreme Court to stop the implementation of the measure while the case was being settled in the Fifth Circuit of Appeals. On Monday, Judge Samuel Alito had blocked the law indefinitely, waiting for the plenary to vote on this request.
On Tuesday, the six conservative judges voted in favor of Texas, allowing the law to take effect while a final ruling is given in the case.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton applauded the high court’s decision in a message in X. “Texas has defeated the emergency motions of the Biden Administration and the ACLU,” and stressed that the law is already in force.
The law, one of the most drastic anti-immigrant measures in the history of the United States, makes it a misdemeanor that a foreigner “enters or attempts to enter the state from a foreign nation” irregularly. The offense becomes a serious crime, punishable by up to 20 years in prison, if the offender is a repeat offender.
The initiative also allows the state Justice to order the expulsion of people without legal process. Likewise, police officers will be able to arrest any individual they suspect that he entered the country illegally, and will have the discretionary power to expel him to Mexico instead of arresting him.
Initially, the measure promoted by the governor of Texas, Republican Greg Abbott, was supposed to enter into force on March 5, but a federal judge sided with the plaintiffs and banned it.
The Texas prosecutor, Ken Paxton, took the fight to the Fifth Circuit of Appeals where he obtained support, so the plaintiffs went to the Supreme Court to prevent the law from entering into force asking for an emergency motion, which was finally denied.
Anand Balakrishnan, lead lawyer of the ACLU Immigrant Rights Project, described Tuesday’s decision as “disappointing.”
The lawyer added in a statement that the law “threatens the integrity of our nation’s immigration laws and the fundamental principles of due process” so they will continue to fight until they defeat it.
International
Spanish Government Targets ‘Big Tech Impunity’ in AI Image Scandal
The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, announced Tuesday that his government will ask prosecutors to investigate X, Meta and TikTok over the alleged creation and distribution of sexually explicit images involving minors generated through artificial intelligence.
In a post on X, Sánchez said the government would formally request that the Public Prosecutor’s Office examine potential crimes that these platforms may have committed by allowing or facilitating the use of AI tools to generate such content.
“These platforms are harming the mental health, dignity and rights of our children,” Sánchez wrote, adding that “the impunity of the giants must end.”
In recent weeks, the Spanish leader has publicly clashed with tech figures such as Elon Musk and Pavel Durov after announcing on February 3 his intention to ban social media access for minors under the age of 16.
Sánchez also signaled plans to amend legislation so that platform executives could be held legally responsible for certain violations committed on their websites.
According to figures released Tuesday by the government, one in five young people in Spain — particularly girls and teenage minors — say they have experienced the circulation of AI-generated fake nude images of themselves while underage.
International
Father Faces Murder Charges in Georgia School Shooting Case
Colin Gray, 55, appeared in court Monday facing charges of murder and involuntary manslaughter in connection with the September 4, 2024, shooting at Apalachee High School, carried out by his son, Colt.
Two 14-year-old students and two teachers were killed, and nine others were injured in the shooting in Winder, Georgia. Colt Gray, who was 14 at the time and is now 16, has been charged as an adult and is awaiting a trial date.
During opening statements, prosecutors alleged that Gray gave his son the AR-15-style rifle used in the attack as a Christmas gift in 2023, despite prior warnings that the teenager had threatened to carry out a school shooting.
According to the FBI, local authorities interviewed Colt and his father in May 2023 after receiving anonymous reports about online threats made by the teen.
“This case is about this defendant and his actions—allowing a minor in his custody to have access to a firearm and ammunition after being warned that the minor intended to harm others,” said Brad Smith, the Barrow County prosecutor.
Defense attorney Brian Hobbs told jurors that Colin Gray was unaware of his son’s intentions and had sought help for the teenager’s declining mental health.
School shootings remain a recurring issue in the United States, where firearms outnumber people and regulations governing the purchase of even high-powered, military-style rifles are relatively permissive.
Central America
Guatemala’s Attorney General Consuelo Porras Loses Bid for Constitutional Court Seat
Guatemala’s attorney general, Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by the United States over corruption allegations, lost a key vote on Monday in which a public university selected two of the 10 magistrates for the country’s highest constitutional court. However, she could still seek a seat through another nominating body.
The election of five full magistrates and five alternates to the Corte de Constitucionalidad (CC) is taking place gradually over more than two months and is considered crucial in the ongoing struggle for control of Guatemala’s judiciary, which critics say has long been influenced by a political and economic elite accused of corruption.
According to results announced at a press conference, the governing council of the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC) rejected Porras, who had applied as either a full or alternate magistrate, and instead chose two candidates aligned with the university rector. The vote was held at a hotel in Antigua, about 35 kilometers from the capital.
Despite the setback, Porras — whose term as attorney general ends on May 16 — could still be nominated to the Constitutional Court by the Corte Suprema de Justicia, which appoints two magistrates. The remaining six are selected by the president, the bar association and Congress.
“It’s always a possibility,” the 72-year-old lawyer said days earlier when asked by reporters whether she would seek nomination through another institution if she lost the USAC vote.
Porras has been sanctioned by Washington and the European Union for allegedly attempting two years ago to block the inauguration of President Bernardo Arévalo and for pursuing legal actions against anti-corruption prosecutors, judges, journalists and social leaders since taking office in 2018.
The USAC vote was controversial because most members of the university’s governing council are serving beyond the expiration of their terms. Students, academics and social activists staged protests against Porras’ candidacy.
Spanish Government Targets ‘Big Tech Impunity’ in AI Image Scandal
Father Faces Murder Charges in Georgia School Shooting Case
Guatemala’s Attorney General Consuelo Porras Loses Bid for Constitutional Court Seat
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