EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – At least three House members from border districts are celebrating passage of a bill enhancing penalties for individuals fleeing law enforcement at high speeds within 100 miles of Mexico or Canada.
The House of Representatives on Thursday approved the Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act by a vote of 264-155. The act amends existing legislation on crimes involving motor vehicles by fleeing from the Border Patrol or any other law enforcement its agents.
It establishes incarceration of up to two years for those who endanger the public while fleeing, up to 20 years if the flight results in serious bodily injury to someone else and up to life in prison if someone dies.
It also amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to disqualify from asylum foreigners convicted of evading arrest while operating a motor vehicle while making other non-citizens eligible for deportation.
The act is named after a Border Patrol agent who died in a crash while pursuing migrants near Mission, Texas, in 2022.
“In Cochise County, high-speed car chases by cartel members, human smugglers, and other bad actors jeopardize the safety of our Customs and Border Protection agents, local law enforcement officials, and residents alike,” said U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Arizona, who cosponsored the bill. “This bill delivers a clear message to anyone who endangers our community that they will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”
High-speed chases involving migrant smuggling have rocked communities like El Paso, where they have resulted in multiple crashes and deaths since illegal migration surged in the fall of 2018.
“This bill would give serious jail time to any human smuggler who evades law enforcement and engages in a high-speed car chase,” said U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, whose district stretches from El Paso to just beyond Eagle Pass, Texas. “Our district has seen enough destruction at the hands of these criminals.”
Democratic lawmakers have pushed to spur changes in Border Patrol chase policies. A few also are placing responsibility on smugglers.
“High-speed chases driven by cartel activity and drug smuggling are putting law enforcement officers and local families at risk,” said U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez, D-New Mexico, who voted for the bill. “This legislation ensures that those who endanger our communities face real consequences.”
Other border Democrats like Arizona’s Raul Grijalva did not vote and Texans like Veronica Escobar and Vicente Gonzalez voted against it, the Congressional Record shows.
Nonprofits like the Immigrant Legal Resource Center called the bill “cruel and unnecessary.”
The group urged lawmakers to vote against it because they say it amounts to double punishment to make a non-citizen serve time in prison and then be deported. That’s “a life-long consequence that tears apart families and destabilizes communities.”
The group also alleges it adds new grounds for deporting an immigrant who may be here lawfully or who is trying to get legal status.
The Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act was read twice in the Senate and then referred to the Committee on the Judiciary on Thursday.
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