(Reuters) – A divided U.S. appeals court on Wednesday blocked the Biden administration from destroying razor-wire fencing that Texas placed along its border with Mexico to deter illegal migration, while the Republican-led state pursues a lawsuit accusing federal authorities of trespassing.
In a 2-1 decision, the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a federal judge who said a Texas trespassing law cannot be applied to the federal government, and U.S. immigration authorities were immune from the state’s lawsuit.
The appeals court said Texas is entitled to a preliminary injunction, because the state is seeking only to safeguard its own property, not “regulate” Border Patrol. It also said Texas has shown it will likely succeed on its trespass claims.
(Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi)