Up First from NPR - Texas Border Law, Mississippi Cops Sentenced, Ohio Senate Primary

Episode Date: March 20, 2024

Migrants in Texas are waking up to a new day of anxiety after a whirlwind of court orders about a controversial immigration enforcement law. Six former Mississippi police officers who pleaded guilty to torturing two Black men are being sentenced this week in federal court. And Ohio Republicans nominate the candidate endorsed by Donald Trump for a race that could determine control of the U.S. Senate.Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.Today's episode of Up First was edited by Alfredo Carbajal, Susanna Capelouto, Padma Rama, Alice Woelfle and Ben Adler. It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Ben Abrams and Taylor Haney. We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott, and our technical director is Zac Coleman.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The state of Texas wants to arrest people they think are in the United States illegally. In a matter of hours, courts allowed that law to take effect and then blocked it. What happens now? I'm Steve Inskeep with Michelle Martin, and this is Up First from NPR News. In Mississippi, two black men were tortured by police officers. What is done, I forgive that part, but other than that, he still did, you know what I'm saying? In Mississippi, two black men were tortured by police officers. Evidence at this week's sentencing hearing shows how the officers covered this up. And Ohio Republicans picked the candidate endorsed by Donald Trump in a race that could determine control of the Senate.

If Joe Biden enters Ohio, Sherrod Brown's going to fly out of here like a scared cat. Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day. Now Our Change will honor 100 years of the Royal Canadian Air Force and their dedicated service to communities at home and abroad. From the skies to our change, this $2 commemorative circulation coin marks their storied past and promising future. Find the limited edition Royal Canadian Air Force $2 coin today. Migrants in Texas are waking up this morning to a new day of anxiety after a whirlwind of court orders yesterday.

Okay, this is all part of a legal battle over an immigration enforcement law that the state of Texas passed last year. So this is the state weighing in on immigration. The law empowers police in Texas to arrest people that they suspect are living in the United States illegally and then allows local judges to order that migrants be deported to Mexico, regardless of what country they may be originally from. For several hours yesterday, the United States Supreme Court allowed this law to be enforced, and then a lower court hit the pause button again. Julian Aguilar from the Texas Newsroom is here with us with the latest. Good morning, Julian.

Good morning. So would you just start by walking us through all the legal developments yesterday and the arguments from both sides? Sure. So the law known as SB4 was originally scheduled to take effect earlier this month, but the Biden administration and immigrant rights groups sued to block it. They argue that the measure is discriminatory and usurps the federal government's responsibility to enforce immigration law. Texas leaders, including Governor Greg Abbott, say the law is necessary because of President Biden's open border policies. They point to a record number of asylum seekers entering the U.S. through Texas.

The legal battle swiftly rose to the U.S. Supreme Court, and yesterday the high Court allowed the law to take effect. The justices didn't take a position on the merits of the case, but instead deferred to an original decision by a three-judge federal panel of the Appeals Court. Then late last night, a different set of judges on the same Appeals Court voted two to one to keep that law blocked. And those judges will hear arguments today on whether it should be kept on hold as the case plays out. So at any moment, perhaps as soon as today, the Appeals Court could allow the law to plays out. So at any moment, perhaps as soon as today, the appeals court could allow the law to be implemented. And if that happens, what do we know about how local police might enforce it?

So local law enforcement officers say they will comply, but they have concerns about how the law will affect their day-to-day operations. Sheriff Oscar Carrillo from Culberson County along the west Texas border says he supports the law, but he's also concerned about how much it could cost his rural border county and others like it. I think we're going to be very selective about the cases we pick up. Our jailers have capacity as we speak today and to start incarcerating undocumented people and charging them with misdemeanor crime is a discussion I'll have to have with my county attorney. That's a common sentiment as officials have said they don't have a lot of guidance on how to implement the law. So let's say for the sake of argument that the law does take effect.

If that happens, talk about some of the legal issues that people living in Texas might face. Sure. So civil and immigrant rights organizations, they have a lot of concerns. The chief among them is that police will have blanket authority to question somebody about their immigration status because of the way they look. Alan Lizagara with the Border Network for Human Rights says he's concerned about the law's impact on people of color and mixed status families in Texas. We know that this law is going to increase racial profiling. We know that this law is going to strip people of their constitutional rights. We know that this law is also going to lead to the mass criminalization of our communities. It's also been argued by opponents of the bill that a migrant with a legitimate claim to asylum

could have their case put in jeopardy because of this law as they could face state criminal charges. And what are officials in Mexico saying about all this? Yeah, there was a strong response from the Mexican government in the short time the law was in effect. The foreign ministry said in a statement Tuesday that it won't accept migrants that have been deported under the Texas law. It also said it will file a brief in opposition to SB4 that highlights the challenges the law presents to the relationship between the United States and Mexico. That's Julian Aguilar from the Texas newsroom. Julian, thank you. Thank you. Six former Mississippi police officers who pleaded guilty to torturing two black men are being sentenced this week in federal court.

This story, which lasts about four minutes, includes details of violence. The officers raided a home early last year. Officers shot one of the men inside, then planted drugs and a gun at the scene to cover it up. With us now is Mississippi Public Broadcasting's Michael McEwen. Michael, good morning. Good morning. So you were in the courtroom yesterday in Jackson for the sentencing hearing. Tell us what happened. Yeah, so two of the six former Rankin County police officers began their sentencing yesterday. They were part of a group self-styled as the Goon Squad.

And in January of 2023, they broke into a home where two black men lived, brutalized them for more than two hours, tortured them, sexually assaulted them, and then tried to cover it up. Hunter Elward, who was a deputy at the time of the raid, was sentenced to 20 years yesterday. He faced the most time under sentencing guidelines, mostly because he shot Michael Corey Jenkins in the mouth in a mock execution that went awry. He was visibly shaking and crying in court and apologized directly to both of his victims. Lieutenant Jeffrey Middleton's hearing went much differently. His attorney really pushed the judge to sentence him differently from Elward. He argued his client played less of a role in the raid itself and that he didn't shoot a gun.

But Judge Tom Lee gave Middleton 17 and a half years, which was the highest allowed under his guidelines, because he said as a lieutenant, Middleton could have stopped the raid but instead participated. I understand that new details in the case came out during this hearing. Yeah, most interestingly, the power structure of the so-called goon squad really came to light. Federal prosecutors said it was Lieutenant Middleton who actually devised the plan to cover up the raid and the accidental shooting. He told his fellow officers that if they told anyone what happened, he'd have them killed. And he also planted a gun and meth on the scene to justify it. There was also testimony that pointed to current Rankin County Sheriff Brian Bailey,

and it alleged that he knew about the goon squad and tolerated it for years. It's also worth noting here that Eddie Parker and Michael Corey Jenkins are Black men, and not only were they brutalized, tortured, and sexually assaulted, but were also called several racial slurs, and were told by the all-white officers to go, quote, back to their side of the river in Jackson. And Rankin County, most notably, is a white suburban enclave just east of Jackson. I understand that the two victims were in court for all this. How did they react to all this? So Eddie Parker says he still really struggles as a result of that night.

He was sexually assaulted and he had his life threatened if he reported the attack to any authorities. And he says that he's still afraid to fall asleep or even go into public. But he did stand up in the courtroom and say that he forgave Hunter Elwood. Here he is speaking again after the hearing. What he's done, I forgive that part. But other than that, he still did, you know what I'm saying, what he did. And he has to be punished for that. Michael Corey Jenkins, who was shot in the mouth and nearly killed, told me that he felt justice was beginning to be served,

but that he didn't forgive Elwood because he wasn't sorry, but is only sorry that he got caught. And before we let you go, what's next? So the other four officers, including the Sheriff Department's lead investigator, will be sentenced two per day through tomorrow. And just from what I heard in court yesterday, I expect more details about how the goon squad operated to come out. That is Michael McKeown with Mississippi Public Broadcasting. Michael, thank you. Thank you. Democrats face a narrow path to holding their Senate majority this November,

and it runs through Ohio, a state Donald Trump has won twice. Senator Sherrod Brown is one of the few Democrats who have held Senate seats in red states, and now he knows his opponent for this fall. In a primary, Republicans endorsed Donald Trump's chosen candidate, Cleveland businessman Bernie Marino. Karen Kastler is Statehouse News Bureau Chief for Ohio's public radio and TV stations, and she's with us now. Good morning. Hi, good morning. You know, from here at least, this Senate primary race had seemed close in the polls. What gave Marino the edge? Simply put, it was Donald Trump. His airport rally on

Saturday in Dayton for Marino was a big factor. A political action committee aligned with U.S. Senate Democrats had bought $2.7 million in ads in the final week, saying Marino is too conservative for Ohio. His rivals accused Democrats of meddling in the primary because they viewed Marino as the weakest candidate in the field. But those ads may actually have helped Marino, who says he wears the Trump endorsement as a badge of honor. I wonder whether Sherrod Brown is going to wear with honor his 99% voting record with Joe

Biden. Whether Joe Biden is the kind of person that he likes to associate with, because I would predict this, if Joe Biden enters Ohio, Sherrod Brown's going to fly out of here like a scared cat. Now, Brown has talked about positions where he has split from Biden, such as on immigration. But Brown comes into the race as a popular candidate who won Ohio after Trump did. And Brown has more money than all three of the Republicans who were running for the nomination had in total. So could you just say more about how Trump's support influenced this race? Well, Moreno was the Trump endorsed candidate. State Senator Matt Dolan had made it clear that he supported Trump's policies. He was not endorsed by Trump.

He was the Ohio GOP establishment candidate, backed by Governor Mike DeWine and former Senator Rob Portman. They had not been enthusiastic about Trump, but had endorsed Trump in 2020. The third candidate in this race, Secretary of State Frank LaRose, had also worked really hard to get Trump's endorsement, but had fallen way behind in money to Marino and Dolan, who were both wealthy. So now that the GOP candidate has been decided, well, the Democratic candidate too, but what can we expect next? We can expect the most expensive U.S. Senate race in Ohio history. Democrats started attacking Marino almost immediately after the race was called about 8.35 last night. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee put out a digital ad that

featured criticisms of Marino by Dolan and the Rose, his opponents. The Ohio Democratic Party has been pushing a narrative that whoever emerged from this brutal campaign would do so with a lot of baggage, and they've attempted to draw attention to Marino's positions on immigration and on abortion. Meanwhile, Brown has a liberal voting record in the Senate, but has appealed to blue-collar voters. He has strong support from unions. Democrats see him as a candidate who can appeal to moderate Ohioans and those frustrated with Trump. But Republicans say Marino is uniting their base and that Ohio is firmly behind the former president.

That is Statehouse News Bureau Chief Karen Kassar. Karen, thank you. Great to talk to you. And that's Up First for Wednesday, March 20th. I'm Michelle Martin. And I'm Steve Inskeep. Today's Up First was edited by Alfredo Carbajal, Susanna Capilouto, Padma Rama, Alice Wolfley, and Ben Adler. It was produced by Ziad Baj, Ben Abrams, and Taylor Haney. We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott, who is so supportive, and our technical director is Zach Coleman. Join us tomorrow. Your next listen is Consider This from NPR. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says total victory over Hamas must happen before the war can end. But is total victory possible?

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