A Harris County judge has denied Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s attempt to shut down local immigration nonprofit FIEL Houston.
Paxton originally petitioned to shut down FIEL in July for allegedly violating rules that govern the organization’s nonprofit status.
Judge R.K. Sandill, of Harris County’s 127th District Court, denied Paxton’s Aug. 15 request for a temporary injunction and petition to shut down the nonprofit. The judge’s two-sentence ruling, issued Friday, included no explanation for the denial.
Neither FIEL nor the attorney general’s office immediately responded to requests for comment.
Paxton argued that by referring to former President Donald Trump as a “son of the devil,” in Spanish, FIEL had violated government rules that limit a nonprofit’s ability to engage in political activities and the endorsements of candidates.
FIEL has yet to issue an official statement on the ruling, but the organization’s director Cesar Espinosa previously told the Landing that while it was the first time the organization had been targeted by the attorney general, he had seen Paxton attempt to silence other organizations geared toward helping immigrants.
“This is something that’s new to us as an organization, but unfortunately, we’ve seen it happen already a few times,” Espinosa said.
Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee submitted a court brief earlier this week expressing support for FIEL.
Menefee asked the court to preserve FIEL’s ability to help Harris County residents, and said the county does not believe Paxton has the authority to shut down a nonprofit in that manner.
“It’s clear that the Attorney General is overstepping his role by singling out organizations like FIEL that advocate for immigrants and their families,” Menefee said in a release. “Lawsuits like this not only undermine the hard work of organizations that provide critical resources to immigrants but also perpetuate a climate of fear and division.”
FIEL is represented in this case by the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and attorney Carlos R. Soltero.
After arguments were heard in court on Aug. 15, MALDEF issued a statement condemning Paxton’s lawsuit.
“Texas’s Attorney General does not have the authority to bring this lawsuit,” said MALDEF Southwest Regional Counsel Fátima Menéndez in the release. “This most recent attack by the Texas Attorney General demonstrates his reckless leadership, retaliatory nature, and unwavering desire to target nonprofit organizations that he disagrees with.”
In that same press release last week, Espionosa called FIEL a “beacon of hope” and expressed confusion as to why Paxton would target a nonprofit engaging in community-building efforts.
“It comes to us as a surprise that suddenly we are being targeted by the Attorney General of Texas in an attempt to take away what has been a beacon of hope for thousands of Houstonians for the last 17 years. From disaster relief to higher education to letting people know about their rights, FIEL has been there in the search for equity and fairness for all Texans.”
A previous attempt by the attorney general’s office to shut down Annunciation House, a nonprofit operating a migrant shelter in El Paso, also was denied by a state district judge.
Earlier Friday, Paxton led a coalition of sixteen Republican-led states in suing the federal government to block a new program that could give legal status to undocumented immigrants married to U.S. citizens.
The initiative from President Joe Biden’s administration was announced in June, but began accepting applications just days ago. It shields up to 500,000 people from deportation and provides a pathway to citizenship, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The Republican attorneys general argue the program is unconstitutional because it exceeds the powers of the executive branch to set immigration policy without authorization from Congress.
The Texas chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens, the country’s oldest and largest Latino civil rights organization, also on Friday called for a federal investigation into the attorney general’s office for what it called “police state tactics” in a small Texas town at Paxton’s direction.
Gabriel Rosales, state director of LULAC, said he has received reports from elderly residents of Dilley, Texas, who have been targeted by law enforcement, at Paxton’s direction, in response to allegations of voter fraud. One resident allegedly had their front door kicked in.
“It is disgraceful and outrageous that the state of Texas, and its highest-ranking law enforcement officer, is once again using the power of his office to instill fear in the hearts of community members who volunteer their time to promote civic engagement,” Rosales said in a press release.
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