(NewsWorthy.news) – A federal judge has ordered the release of a group of illegal immigrants who were involved in a riot at the southern border last month.
Less than 10 days after a large group of military-age Venezuelan migrants forced their way across the border in El Paso, Texas, Magistrate Judge Humberto Acosta has said that the suspects—who also attacked state authorities and destroyed property—must be released “on their own recognizance.”
On March 31, the judge discussed the incident via an online teleconference bond hearing held with the El Paso District Attorney’s Office. The local legal office reportedly said that prosecutors were “not ready” to continue with detention hearings for all the suspected rioters. Because of this, Acosta determined that the migrants should be released.
The judge did not specify the exact number of migrants who were arrested on charges related to “riot participation” or how many would be released under his order. However, he did say that there were “hundreds of arrestees” from the recent incident who have rights to attend their own detention hearings within 48 hours.
Ashley Martinez, the Assistant District Attorney in El Paso, reportedly requested that the hearings be postponed but scheduled for a later date. However, the judge also denied this request.
Alongside the broad release of the suspected rioters, Acosta also approved the release of two separate illegal immigrants who were arrested for their suspected involvement in cutting fences along the southern border. Should the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency institute a hold on the order, the suspected rioters would remain in custody.
The incident in question took place on Thursday March 21, when the young men from Venezuela pushed through the border fencing and confronted members of the Texas National Guard. As Republican Gov. Greg Abbott announced at the time, service members with the Lone Star State’s National Guard and Department of Public Safety were told to take all riot participants into custody on charged of “criminal trespass” and “destruction of property.”
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