(WESTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS (COVERING SAN ANTONIO, AUSTIN, EL PASO)) The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas filed 1,709 new immigration and immigration‑related criminal cases during the six‑week federal government shutdown in late 2025, marking one of the busiest enforcement stretches in recent years for a district already at the center of the border debate. The filings, announced on November 14, 2025, show that while large parts of the federal government slowed or stopped, federal prosecutors in this border region kept pushing immigration cases into court at a rapid pace.
Scope of the district and significance of the filings
The district covers San Antonio, Austin, El Paso, and a string of border counties along the frontier with Mexico. It has long been a test ground for tough immigration enforcement. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas in its November release, the 1,709 filings were new immigration and immigration‑related criminal cases opened during the shutdown period alone, not a longer yearly total.
That scale of work during a time when many federal employees were furloughed underscores how immigration prosecution remained a top federal law enforcement priority in this region of the United States.
Types of charges and example cases
These immigration cases span a wide range of charges. Prosecutors listed classic border offenses such as:
- Illegal entry
- Re‑entry after deportation
- Smuggling (including human smuggling and drug smuggling)
- Document fraud and unlawful procurement of citizenship
Examples cited in the release included:
- Prosecutions for smuggling methamphetamine across the border
- Cases involving the smuggling of children
- A case of unlawful procurement of citizenship
While the press material did not release names, these examples were used to illustrate the mix of drug, human smuggling, and document fraud prosecutions that now fall under the immigration enforcement umbrella.
Operations during the shutdown
The timing of the surge adds a sharp political edge. The six‑week shutdown in late 2025 forced many federal agencies to cut services, delay civil processing, and send non‑essential staff home. Yet immigration enforcement in the Western District of Texas pressed forward:
- Criminal dockets continued to move while other federal work slowed.
- Court schedules in El Paso and San Antonio remained crowded with new immigration cases.
- Prosecutors were able to bring indictments, present plea deals, and move defendants through the system.
This shows that criminal immigration enforcement was treated as essential work during the shutdown.
For migrants and families caught in this process, the message is plain: even during a shutdown, the risk of arrest and prosecution at the border does not go away.
Defense lawyers in the region say clients are often surprised to learn that the shutdown affects civil services more than criminal enforcement. Visa processing, asylum interviews, and some administrative reviews can slow when budgets lapse, but criminal immigration cases—such as illegal entry or re‑entry—still move through the courts.
Impact on courts, lawyers, and families
The raw numbers translate into heavy burdens on the local legal system:
- 1,709 filings in six weeks equals dozens of new cases every business day.
- Federal defenders and private immigration lawyers face straining caseloads, tight plea deadlines, and limited time with each client.
- Families struggle to follow cases across multiple appearances, often contending with fast‑changing schedules and transfers between detention centers.
The numbers announced in November confirm what many attorneys had reported: federal courtrooms full, detention centers busy, and plea hearings stacked on the calendar.
Broader context: local and federal enforcement efforts
The district’s posture fits into a broader pattern along the southern border. Texas state leaders and federal authorities have cooperated in recent years under initiatives such as Operation Lone Star, which bring state police, local sheriffs, and federal agents into closer enforcement coordination.
- The Western District of Texas has become one of the main places where these joint efforts turn into criminal charges.
- Analysis by VisaVerge.com shows the district has repeatedly ranked among the highest in the country for immigration prosecutions—a trend supported by the shutdown‑period filings.
The Department of Justice emphasized that many cases involved more than simple border crossing. In the cited examples, prosecutors pointed to:
- Loads of methamphetamine moved through border checkpoints
- Attempts to bring children into the country through smuggling networks
- Allegations of obtaining naturalization by hiding disqualifying information
Each offense falls into a slightly different category of immigration‑related crime, but all are handled in the same federal courts that process routine illegal entry charges. For more information about how federal prosecutors handle such offenses, see the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdtx.
Legal and policy considerations
Former federal officials note that shutdown rules help explain the pattern:
- Criminal law enforcement, particularly work tied to public safety or national security, is often treated as “excepted” from furlough rules and continues during funding lapses.
- In border districts, immigration cases are frequently folded into that category because officials view them as connected to security and public safety.
That legal framework explains why line prosecutors, federal agents, and marshals kept working on immigration prosecutions while other federal workers stayed home.
Criticism and community response
Advocates and community groups raise concerns about priorities and impacts:
- They argue that filing 1,709 new immigration cases during a shutdown highlights the federal government’s emphasis on criminal enforcement over civil immigration processing.
- Community groups from Del Rio to El Paso reported no pause in arrests along highways and at checkpoints.
- For mixed‑status families, the shutdown period brought the same fears as any other week: a traffic stop that leads to federal custody, a home visit that turns into a criminal case, or a family member charged with re‑entry after prior deportation.
Supporters of tough enforcement counter that the Western District of Texas is enforcing Congress’s intent by bringing swift criminal charges against people involved in smuggling schemes or repeat crossings. Critics say relying on criminal courts while civil systems remain backlogged deepens the divide between punitive responses and humanitarian needs, impacting asylum seekers and long‑time residents with U.S. citizen children.
What this means going forward
For now, the November announcement makes clear that federal immigration enforcement in this region will not slow simply because Washington enters another funding fight. As Congress and the White House debate future budgets and potential shutdowns, migrants, lawyers, and communities from Austin to El Paso will be watching court dockets—not political speeches—for the clearest sign of how federal immigration policy operates on the ground.
This Article in a Nutshell
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas reported 1,709 new immigration and related criminal filings over a six-week federal shutdown in late 2025. Filed November 14, the cases span illegal entry, re-entry after deportation, smuggling (including methamphetamine and child smuggling), and document fraud. Criminal dockets in San Antonio, Austin, and El Paso continued during furloughs, straining defenders, courts, and families. Officials cite public safety exceptions to furlough rules; advocates warn of humanitarian and procedural impacts.
