Judge temporarily blocks officials from deporting witness of deadly ICE shooting

A national justice successful Texas this week temporarily barred migration authorities from deporting 1 of the witnesses successful the fatal shooting of Mexican migrant Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by Immigration and Customs Enforcement earlier this period successful Houston.

U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison issued an bid Monday blocking ICE from deporting Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego without archetypal getting the judge's permission. Ellison besides barred ICE from transferring Rojas Pliego distant from the Southern District of Texas without anterior approval.

Rojas Pliego, who is facing deportation proceedings, is 1 of 3 operation workers who were wrong the enactment van Salgado Araujo was driving erstwhile helium was changeable and killed by an ICE serviceman connected July 7. One of the different witnesses successful ICE custody is Salgado Araujo's brother.

The deadly shooting, which was followed by the fatal shooting of a Colombian migrant astatine the hands of an ICE cause successful Maine little than a week later, reignited the nationalist statement implicit President Trump's assertive deportation blitz.

The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, said 1 of its agents changeable Salgado Araujo successful self-defense, claiming the Mexican migrant weaponized his enactment van during a postulation stop. Salgado Araujo's household has disputed that mentation of events, demanding an autarkic investigation into the killing. While it has said that Salgado Araujo was successful the U.S. illegally, DHS has admitted that ICE agents were looking for a antithetic person erstwhile they stopped his vehicle.

Last week, the FBI submitted an affidavit successful national tribunal disclosing photos that an cause said indicated that methamphetamine whitethorn person been wrong the enactment van. That allegation has been disputed by Houston's apical prosecutor, Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare. And Ruby Powers, an lawyer representing Salgado Araujo's brother, said the worldly successful question was apt brackish utilized successful a homemade electrolyte premix to brave the summertime heat.

Teare told CBS News past week helium submitted paperwork to assistance the 3 witnesses detained by ICE get ineligible protections known arsenic U visas, which shield victims of crimes from deportation if they assistance a instrumentality enforcement investigation. 

Teare's bureau is investigating the July 7 shooting, which is besides being reviewed separately by national officials. He said helium is "more than prepared" to record charges against migration agents "if the lawsuit and the grounds directs america that transgression wrongdoing occurred."