Minnesota AG sues Texas governor to force extradition of ICE agent

Minnesota AG sues Texas governor to force extradition of ICE agent Keith Ellison asked a federal judge to block the release of ICE agent Christian Castro - Bookmark - CommentsGo to comments Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison sued Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday, seeking to force the extradition of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent accused of shooting and injuring a man before allegedly lying about the circumstances. Ellison asked a federal judge to prevent the Cameron County sheriff from releasing ICE agent Christian Castro and to order Abbott to sign an extradition warrant so Minnesota authorities can take custody of him. Castro, 52, was arrested in Texas in May on Minnesota charges of assault and falsely reporting a crime stemming from the Jan. 14 shooting of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis. Prosecutors allege Castro fired through the front door of a Minneapolis home, striking Sosa-Celis in the leg with a bullet that lodged in a child’s bedroom wall. Authorities also accuse Castro of falsely claiming that Sosa-Celis and another man had attacked an ICE officer with a broom handle and snow shovel. Ellison told a news conference that unless he's extradited, Castro could be released from jail next week -- 90 days since he was detained -- under Texas law. And if he's freed, Castro could slip into Mexico from the border town where he's being held, Ellison said. The lawsuit said Castro has been making calls from jail to a woman in Mexico, talking “about marrying her and buying a house in Mexico when he is released.” “Christian Castro has been charged with breaking the law in Minnesota,” Ellison said. “He must face justice in Minnesota. Gov. Abbott should have granted Gov. Walz’s extradition request long ago and is required to do so now.” It was not immediately known if Castro had a lawyer who could speak for him. Online court records in Minnesota and county jail records in Texas did not list a defense attorney. Abbott's office said in a statement that it would not comment on “pending extradition matters.” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said the legal action to compel Castro’s extradition “should be a completely unnecessary lawsuit.” She said jail officials and prosecutors in Texas have been “very cooperative,” and that an extradition “is not supposed to be controversial.” The office of Cameron County Sheriff Manny Trevino declined to comment Tuesday on the case. Authorities say Sosa-Celis was shot after Castro and another officer chased a different man, Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna, to the Minneapolis apartment duplex where he and Sosa-Celis lived. Sosa-Celis and Aljorna were legally in the U.S., according to Minnesota officials. Federal authorities initially accused Sosa-Celis and Aljorna of beating an officer. A federal judge later dismissed the charges, and ICE and the Justice Department opened an investigation into whether agents lied about what happened. The lawsuit Ellison filed in U.S. District Court in Texas cites a 1987 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that compliance with the Constitution’s extradition clause is mandatory, affording no discretion to the governor or courts of a state where a defendant is being held. Moriarty said that since Castro’s arrest, Texas has extradited three unrelated criminal defendants without incident to Minnesota. “Gov. Abbott has received communication with us on an ongoing basis, including recently,” Ellison said. “We have to take the position that they are refusing to honor the extradition request.” Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies Comments