In a lawsuit filed against Kinney County over detention policies of illegal foreign nationals, the county submitted more than 30 affidavits including testimony from residents describing their experiences as a result of Biden administration policies, including encounters with violent men who illegally entered Texas not far from the residents live.
One resident who has lived in Val Verde and Kinney counties since 1996, Jacqueline Lewis, said her family hadn’t experienced anything terrifying until the last few years. Border Patrol agents who previously responded to calls “now tell us they are too busy at the river processing family units to send help. … We feel abandoned by our federal government and … are in very real danger.”
On Christmas Eve 2022, a state trooper was parked outside her home when illegal foreign nationals fired at law enforcement officers and fled on foot just a few yards from her home. Shootouts and high-speed chases of smugglers attempting to evade capture have created great danger for residents, she says.
“As a mother of two daughters I worry most about my children being killed in a high-speed chase or being kidnapped by cartel members,” she said.
