Federal Appeals Court Orders Texas to Remove Border Buoy Barrier from Rio Grande

The floating border buoy installed by the State of Texas in the Rio Grande at Eagle Pass must be removed, according to a ruling by the 5^th Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday. The 2-1 ruling by the court affirmed the Biden administration’s Department of Justice argument that the buoys pose a threat to public safety and block navigation in the Rio Grande.

In a Friday X posting (formerly Twitter), Texas Governor Greg Abbott promised to seek an immediate hearing on the matter by the entire court.

The 5th Cir. Court of Appeals’ denial of Texas’ sovereign authority to secure the border with floating marine barriers is clearly wrong.

AG Paxton & I will seek an immediate rehearing by the entire court.

We’ll go to SCOTUS if needed to protect Texas from Biden’s open borders.

— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) December 1, 2023

The decision of the appeals court upholds a lower court injunction that instructs the state to remove the 1000-foot floating barrier within ten days. In addition to historical data submitted by the federal government categorizing the Rio Grande as a navigable waterway subject to U.S. jurisdiction, the Chief of the U.S. Border Patrol, Jason D. Owens, was cited by the court as providing information regarding the buoys’ negative impact on rescue operations by his agency.

Owens’s testimony sought to persuade the court that the freedom of movement of small watercraft used to respond quickly in migrant rescues would be impaired by the barrier, and response times would potentially be delayed.

According to Owens, from the beginning of fiscal year 2018 through July 23, 2023, there were 249 water-related rescues and 89 water-related deaths of migrants that occurred in or around the Rio Grande throughout the Eagle Pass Border Patrol Station’s area of responsibility.

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