Texas Child Exploitation, Fugitive Apprehension weekly round-up

Staff Report

The responsibilities, of the Office of the Attorney General, are to serve as legal counsel to all boards and agencies of state government, issue legal opinions when requested by the Governor, heads of state agencies, and other officials and agencies as provided by Texas statutes.

The Texas AG sits as an ex-officio member of state committees and commissions and defends challenges to state laws and suits against both state agencies and individual employees of the State.

Many Texans look to the Office of the Attorney General for guidance with disputes and legal issues. The agency receives hundreds of letters, phone calls, and visits each week about crime victims’ compensation, child support, abuse in nursing homes, possible consumer fraud, and other topics.

To find out more about the Texas Attorney General, visit the official website at https://texasattorneygeneral.gov/.

Texas Attorney General’s Law Enforcement Round-Up

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Child Exploitation Unit

Travis County

Chad Allen Wilcox, 43, of Elgin was arrested for two counts of Possession of Child Pornography on April 1. This case was received as a NCMEC CyberTipline report involving the upload of child pornography to an email account with the potential of a live victim. Wilcox claimed ownership of the email account and to producing and sending images of child pornography. Investigators seized multiple devices to be examined by the Digital Forensics Unit. He was transported to the Travis County Jail.

Tyler County

Jeremy Shawn Nobles, 45, of Warren was arrested on five counts of Possession of Child Pornography and four counts of Promotion of Child Pornography on April 6. This case was received as a NCMEC CyberTipline report for the upload of child pornography to a social media site. Investigators seized multiple devices for examination by the Digital Forensics Unit. He was transported to the Tyler County Jail.

Hardin County

Brandon Lee Stanley was charged with five counts of Possession of Child Pornography on April 7. This case was received as a NCMEC CyberTipline report involving the upload of child pornography to an online account. Stanley was already incarcerated in the Hardin County Jail for unrelated charges. Stanley admitted to owning the email account associated with the suspect online account and admitted to having a problem with child pornography while he was on methamphetamines. Investigators seized multiple devices for examination by the Digital Forensics Unit.

Fugitive Apprehension Unit

Harris County

Galen Black was arrested in Baytown on April 1. Black had an open federal warrant for Receipt of Child Pornography by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) out of the United States District Court, Southern District of Texas in Houston. Black is currently out on bond in Harris County for Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child. This arrest was made while working with the United States Marshals Service, Gulf Coast Violent Offender and Fugitive Task Force

Atascosa County

Ramiro Villarreal was arrested in Pleasanton on April 7. Villarreal had an outstanding warrant for Sex Assault/Aggravated Sexual Assault Child issued by the Nueces County Sheriff’s Office. The arrest was made while working with the United States Marshals Lone Star Fugitive Task Force in San Antonio. 

AG Paxton Sues Biden Administration to Reinstate Migrant Protection Protocols

AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt today filed a lawsuit against the Biden Administration to reinstate the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) to curb the criminal and humanitarian crisis at the border.

The MPP restricts illegal aliens’ ability to remain in the United States during immigration proceedings, which greatly reduces the burden shouldered by state and federal agencies tasked with defending our border.

“President Biden could immediately remedy the influx of crime pouring across our border by reinstating the Migrant Protection Protocols. Dangerous criminals are taking advantage of the lapse in law enforcement and it’s resulting in human trafficking, smuggling, a plethora of violent crimes, and a massive, unprecedented burden on state and federal programs for which taxpayers must foot the bill,” said Attorney General Paxton. “We cannot allow this lawlessness to destroy our communities any longer. President Biden must act.”

The MPP was enacted by President Trump in 2019 and applies “to aliens who have no legal entitlement to enter the United States but who depart from a third country and transit through Mexico to reach the United States land border.” The lawsuit argues that the Biden Administration’s unlawful halting of the MPP violated the Administrative Procedure Act and was an arbitrary and capricious agency action.

Read a copy of the lawsuit here.

AG Paxton Sues Biden Administration to Reinstate Migrant Protection Protocols

AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt today filed a lawsuit against the Biden Administration to reinstate the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) to curb the criminal and humanitarian crisis at the border.

The MPP restricts illegal aliens’ ability to remain in the United States during immigration proceedings, which greatly reduces the burden shouldered by state and federal agencies tasked with defending our border.

“President Biden could immediately remedy the influx of crime pouring across our border by reinstating the Migrant Protection Protocols. Dangerous criminals are taking advantage of the lapse in law enforcement and it’s resulting in human trafficking, smuggling, a plethora of violent crimes, and a massive, unprecedented burden on state and federal programs for which taxpayers must foot the bill,” said Attorney General Paxton. “We cannot allow this lawlessness to destroy our communities any longer. President Biden must act.”

The MPP was enacted by President Trump in 2019 and applies “to aliens who have no legal entitlement to enter the United States but who depart from a third country and transit through Mexico to reach the United States land border.”

The lawsuit argues that the Biden Administration’s unlawful halting of the MPP violated the Administrative Procedure Act and was an arbitrary and capricious agency action.

Read a copy of the lawsuit here.

Request for Opinion

Official Request Summary RQ-0403-KP
Authority of a county attorney to file suit to enjoin a violation of a restriction contained in a properly recorded plat of property within the county

Date Received
Thursday, April 8, 2021

Official Requestor
The Honorable Dee Hobbs
Williamson County Attorney
405 M.L.K. Street, #7
Georgetown, Texas 78626

Notification of Opinion

Official Request Summary RQ-0384-KP
Whether public improvement district assessments may be used in specific circumstances

Official Opinion Summary KP-0366
Use of public improvement district assessments in particular circumstances

Notification of Opinion

Official Request Summary RQ-0385-KP
Whether subsection 20.05(a)(5) of the Business and Commerce Code prohibits a consumer reporting agency from reporting certain information if the consumer is covered by a self-funded plan with a reference-based-pricing program

Official Opinion Summary KP-0367
Application of Business and Commerce Code subsection 20.05(a)(5) to a self-funded plan with a reference-based-pricing program that does not utilize a provider network