DOJ lawsuit against Texas for Rio Grande barriers is based on this law
According to a Department of Justice lawsuit, Texas is violating a law by obstructing a navigable waterway and failing to get authorization for the barriers from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Image from the July 24 suit.
The United States filed a lawsuit Monday that seeks to force Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to remove floating barriers that he placed in the Rio Grande River to deter illegal immigration.
The federal suit filed in the Western District of Texas is based on the Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act of 1899.
According to the July 24 suit, Texas is violating the law by obstructing a navigable waterway and failing to get authorization for the barriers from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The barriers consist of buoys strung together, according to a July 24 Department of Justice press release.
DOJ officials wrote to Abbott on July 20, asking him to commit to removing the barriers. Abbott responded in a letter to President Joe Biden that included the sentence, “Texas will see you in court, Mr. President.”
The suit is United States v. Abbott.
The New York Times, Politico, Courthouse News Service and CNN are among the publications covering the suit.
