Governor Abbott opens Operation Lone Star jail booking facility

AUSTIN – Governor Greg Abbott today announced that the State of Texas has launched a second Operation Lone Star jail booking facility. At the facility, individuals who are arrested for committing border-related crimes in the surrounding region will be booked and magistrated before being transferred to the Briscoe or Segovia Unit.

This new facility in Jim Hogg County is the second jail booking facility of its kind in Texas, with the first being launched in Val Verde County in July 2021.

“Securing the border includes arresting and prosecuting anyone committing border-related crimes in Texas,” said Governor Abbott. “The launch of our second Operation Lone Star jail booking facility builds upon the unprecedented actions taken by Texas to respond to the Biden Administration’s open border policies. The State of Texas’ work to secure the border is made stronger by our collaboration with local governments and law enforcement across the state, and I am grateful to our partners in Jim Hogg County for working with our state agencies to launch this new facility.”

This new facility is funded through House Bill 9, which provided over $1.8 billion in state funding for border security over the next two years. This law included funding for three Operation Lone Star jail booking facilities.

In June 2021, Governor Abbott announced that Texas will arrest and jail individuals trespassing or committing other state crimes along the border.

The Governor directed the Texas Commission on Jail Standards and the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement to work with border counties to establish alternative detention facilities to ensure enough jail capacity for individuals who are arrested for border-related criminal activities such as trespassing.

The state has surged resources into border communities to deter, detect, and interdict criminal behavior. Governor Abbott’s actions to secure the border include:

• Signing laws that provide $3 billion in funding for Texas’ border security efforts
• Launching Operation Lone Star and deploying thousands of National Guard soldiers and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers
• Arresting and jailing illegal migrants trespassing or committing other state crimes in Texas
• Building the border wall in Texas
• Signing a law to make it easier to prosecute smugglers bringing people into Texas
• Signing 9 laws cracking down on human trafficking in Texas
• Signing a law enhancing penalties for the manufacturing and distribution of fentanyl
• Issuing a disaster declaration for the border crisis
• Issuing an executive order preventing non-governmental entities from transporting illegal immigrants
• Taking legal action to enforce the Remain in Mexico and Title 42 policies in Texas