Bexar County Commissioners on Tuesday approved $1 million to establish a immigrant legal defense fund after hearing from several local immigration attorneys, activists, and from those caught up in the deportation process.
The experts told commissioners there are 175,000 undocumented immigrants in San Antonio and more than 1,300 are now detained at the third largest Immigration Customs Enforcement facility in the U.S. in Pearsall. All risk deportation.
The attorneys from several organizations said migrants who appear in court without legal representation are five times more likely to be deported and in many cases would face persecution and even death. They talked of children showing up in court alone without an attorney.
Even residents who are legally here can sometimes find themselves caught up in the deportation process. Mario Hernandez of San Antonio told commissioners that he had lived here for decades when he found himself wrongfully detained.
"I wasn't allowed to speak or open my mouth to ask any questions after being here in the United States for more than 27 years, been a legal resident for almost 20 years... They don't want to give me any information. I got sent to the detention center," he said.
Hernandez said the immigration judge would not listen to him until after he obtained a lawyer who won his release. He said that is why he spoke to commissioners to urge them to create the fund to help others.
Commissioner Justin Rodriguez proposed the fund which passed a nearly unanimous court vote. He praised those migrants who lost a day's pay to appear in court to speak in support of the fund to unify families and even the playing field in court, a process he called intimidating even for an immigration attorney.
Commissioner Marialyn Barnard called their testimony heartbreaking and compelling, but voted against the fund using county dollars, citing the needs of county residents, such as more compensation for law enforcement officers and more affordable housing.
County Judge Nelson Wolff praised the work of the immigration attorneys and activists but cautioned them real change in the immigration system will only come at the federal level.
In other action, Medical Examiner Kimberley Molina updated commissioners on her office efforts to identify all 53 victims who died after riding across the border into Texas in a sweltering truck. She said 48 died at the scene and five died later at area hospitals.
She said her office staff worked from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. at the scene on Quintana Road after they were summoned there by law enforcement on June 27 and into the next day.
Molina said they worked from July 28 through July 30 to identify the dead and were assisted by two medical examiners from Travis County and one from Dallas County.
Molina, a veteran of the office, who has held its top job for more than a year now, asked commissioners to increase funding and staffing at her office. She said due to increases in the murder rate and population they have grown from what could be considered a mid-sized office into a large office.
She said they are short an assistant medical examiner and the competition to recruit forensic pathologists in the U.S. is intense, pegging their current number at 500 nationwide.
Her first year in office has been demanding for her and her staff. There were the winter deaths of 2021, the pandemic, the Uvalde school shooting, and now the truck deaths on top of their regular case load.
Molina said her staff of 61 is feeling overwhelmed. She said their national accreditation is at risk because their individual caseloads are too high. They are expected to limit each pathologist to 250 autopsies a year. Molina said their individual caseload is now around 400 autopsies per year.
Commissioners thanked Molina and her staff for their hard work and pledged to look into staffing and funding. Molina herself traveled to Uvalde to oversee the transport of children's bodies from Robb Elementary School in Uvalde to her facility here.
In other action Tuesday commissioners:
- Approved the issuance of certificates of obligation to raise $500 million towards the construction of University Health hospitals outside of the Medical Center area near Retama Park on the far North Side and Texas A&M-San Antonio on the far South Side.
- Approved negotiations to begin for a $2 million engineering study on a link between the River Walk and San Pedro Creek Culture Park that would include five 20 story buildings. Commissioner Tommy Calvert valued the development at $400 million and said it would return the county's investment. Commissioners Marialyn Barnard and Rebeca Clay-Flores voted no since the City of San Antonio has yet to formally commit to the project.
- Approved $20 million from the American Rescue Plan Act to go towards construction of affordable housing by applicants recommend by staff.
- Approved a $6.4 million extension of the Zarzamora Creek Trail.
- Approved $200,000 for a public outreach program to curb the number of ballots rejected due to state Senate Bill 1. The voter education effort will include broadcast and digital media and grassroots outreach.
