State of Texas: Gov. Abbott unveils billboards to deter migrants, before they reach Texas border

AUSTIN (Nexstar) - Gov. Greg Abbott announced the state is placing dozens of billboards in Central American and Mexican cities to deter potential migrants from making the trek north. Abbott said the messaging on the billboards is a dose of "tough medicine" to hopefully prevent people who might be on their way to the Texas-Mexico border.

"They inform potential illegal immigrants about the reality of what will happen to them if they try to enter Texas illegally," said Abbott during a news conference.

The announcement came on the same day that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection released data showing an uptick in the number of migrant encounters in some sectors along the Texas-Mexico border. The data shows encounters in the Rio Grande Valley sector doubled in November when compared to the previous month.

"I think people are definitely fearful that when President-elect Donald Trump takes office, the border will be completely closed, and that they are making a last-ditch effort to get up here," said Border Report correspondent Sandra Sanchez, referencing the data.

The governor made the announcement about the billboards on private ranchland in Eagle Pass near the U.S.-Mexico border. The ranch is owned by Kim Wall and her husband, Martin. The Wall family said they have found migrant women and children beaten and sexually assaulted on their property.

The family said they burned down several "rape trees" where these assaults were happening. The Wall family has also said they recently found three people murdered on their property, making them feel unsafe to walk around their land.

"We've had several rape trees and lots of women that have been found beaten and raped in front of our house, left to die in drainage ditches," said Kim to a group of reporters.

The billboards are written in Spanish, Russian, Arabic and Chinese, with the message to warn people from attempting to cross the border.

Some of the messages highlight the sexual assault dangers of a journey up north. One billboard reads, "Your wife and daughter will pay for their trip with their bodies."

Rose Luna, CEO of the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault, joined the governor during the news conference. She said has listened to horror stories from survivors and that there is an unspoken sexual assault crisis at the southern border.

"One of them said the very violence they were trying to escape is the violence they experienced on the journey here," Luna recalled during the news conference.

Humanitarian groups have reported concerns for many years about sexual assaults against migrants. Norma Pimentel, with Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, raised concerns in 2014 when a surge of border crossings happened in the McAllen area.

"She told me back then that three out of every four women face some kind of assault. Eleven year-olds are coming across the border with the morning after pill tucked into their bras, and they're told, 'you might have to use this,'" Sanchez said.

Abbott hopes the new campaign will discourage any influx of border crossings in the last month of the Biden administration as President-elect Trump prepares to take office on Jan. 20. The governor said the Republican president will bring better collaboration and cooperation on border security efforts.

"It's a deadly situation. A horrific situation for those who are victims of sexual assault. A horror that we fully expect to end beginning in about a month when President Trump takes office and shuts down the border and restores safety and normalcy to an immigration process," Abbott said.

In a post to X Thursday morning before the news conference, the governor said, "Texas is fighting to stop illegal immigration, human smuggling, and drug trafficking. I launched Operation Lone Star in 2021 to do just that."

Since Operation Lone Star began in March 2021, there have been 516,300 illegal immigrant apprehensions, 45,300 criminal arrests, 39,400 felony charges, and 505 million lethal doses of fentanyl seized, according to the Governor's office. Those numbers were last updated in July 2024.

The newest campaign adds to the multi-technique effort Texas is utilizing to deter migrants from crossing over the border illegally. Texas has used razor wire, marine barriers, and Department of Public Safety Troopers and Texas National Guardsmen as part of its border security efforts.

Texas is also building portions of border wall to accompany the existing federally built wall. The Texas Facilities Commission, the agency in charge of building the state-funded wall, says Texas has completed 50 miles of the wall so far. Another 15.5 miles of border are under construction or awaiting construction.

There is active border construction at 13 different sites across Cameron, Starr, Zapata, Webb, Maverick, and Val Verde counties, according to the TFC website.

New bill would require safety barriers at Texas ERs

A new billed filed in direct response to a KXAN investigation, would require security barriers, called bollards, at Texas emergency room entrances.

State Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, filed Senate Bill 660 Thursday. It would require crash-rated bollards, or similar safety barriers, at emergency rooms "located near an area with a vehicular traffic."

The goal: "to prevent a motor vehicle from crashing into an emergency room."

It's a direct response to a KXAN investigation into the Feb. 13 deadly crash at St. David's North Austin Medical Center, which killed the driver and injured five, including the Bernard family.

In October, West promised to look into a bollard measure in response to our reporting.

"We re-emphasize to the Bernard family: What happened to you is a tragedy and it shouldn't happen again in the state of Texas," West said at the time. "And I'm going to do everything I can in my power to make sure it doesn't happen again."

In the 10 months following that crash, KXAN found more than 400 crashes at medical facilities nationwide in the past decade. In recent days and weeks, there have been crashes at medical centers in Fort Worth, California, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Tennessee. We also visited the Texas A&M Transportation Institute near College Station to see, firsthand, how crash-rated bollards can stop a speeding vehicle.

"The Bernard family is so grateful that responsible, proactive measures are being taken like this ... to prevent these predictable accidents and save others from the destruction the Bernard's are suffering," the family's attorney, Sean Breen, said in a statement in response to West's bill.

The statewide measure comes four days before a new Austin ordinance, also sparked by a KXAN investigation, is set to take effect. That will require crash-rated bollards at new hospitals, urgent care clinics and stand-alone ERs. Existing facilities will be required to take the same safety steps if they expand in the future.

Levi Bernard, who was injured in the crash along with his wife, Nadia, and their two toddlers, previously told KXAN in a series of exclusive interviews that it's "unfortunate that bollards weren't there when this happened to us."

"We're just super glad that our story is being used as a sort of catalyst," he said.

“To how things should be,” Nadia added. “And that no one else will have to go through what we’re going through.”

Their story is now the center of a $1 million lawsuit against St. David's NAMC for not having bollards -- which their attorney argues could have stopped the car from speeding through the ER entrance. After the incident, and following our questions, the hospital installed a dozen. It has now installed bollards at "all of our hospitals."

"St. David's HealthCare installed bollards at all of our hospitals prior to the Austin City Council approving the ordinance," the hospital group said in a statement, "and we will work with policymakers to ensure compliance with any new legal or regulatory requirement."

When pressed, St. David's would not say whether any of the bollards it installed are crash-rated.

"Due to the ongoing litigation surrounding this issue, we will not provide any additional information," the hospital responded.

If the bill gets a hearing, there will likely be a familiar face at the Capitol. West's office has reached Austin City Council Member Mackenzie Kelly, whose term is ending, to testify on this topic. Kelly introduced Austin's bollard ordinance after watching KXAN's investigation.

If passed, the Health and Human Services Commission would be tasked with adopting rules to implement the bill by Dec. 1, 2025. Hospitals would be required to comply on Jan. 1, 2026.

West and other state lawmakers begin the next legislative session in less than a month.

Texas school districts report a rising number of assaults on employees

Tiffany Robinson remembered approaching her school’s assistant principal in tears.

“I was shaking, I was mad, I was upset, I was scared,” she said.

Robinson, a chemistry teacher at Jarrell High School, explained she never felt so afraid in her 18-year teaching career.

Two weeks after school started, Robinson recounted how she and her teaching aide struggled reining in her class while they waited to be dismissed to a pep rally.

She said it began when one student started yelling obscenities. Shortly after, three more students joined in, she said.

“There was a student in the front that was cussing and telling me that I was going to make him late. ‘Eff you, eff you, you're going to make me late. You don't know what you're doing,’ It's just on and on and on," she recounted.

She explained that one student, in particular, jumped up on a stool to further rile up the other students.

When the bell finally rang, the students left. But Robinson said she worried the group would return.

“I'm done,” she said. “I'm resigning. I'm not doing this. I'm not taking this anymore.”

That night, at 10 p.m., Robinson emailed her formal resignation to her principal and Board of Trustees.

Though Robinson’s incident stopped short of a physical altercation, in her resignation letter she expressed feeling fearful and unsafe.

“The constant behavior, discipline and disrespect issues daily have significantly impacted my ability to perform my duties effectively and safely,” she wrote.

In a statement to KXAN, a Jarrell ISD spokesperson did not speak directly to the incident in Robinson’s classroom but said the district condemns any form of violence or disrespect from students.

“At Jarrell ISD, we work hard with campus administrators and our Jarrell ISD Police Department to build an environment where teachers can perform their duties without fear, harassment or violence,” continued the statement.

Robinson is not alone in feeling unsafe in the classroom.

Texas school districts collectively reported 2,654 district employees being assaulted by a student in the 2023-2024 school year, an 18% increase from the year before, according to data from the Texas Education Agency. School districts are required to annually report the number of physical assaults against a district employee by a student to TEA.

But there can be discrepancies when districts report their numbers, according to Zeph Capo, a former public school science teacher and president of the Texas American Federation of Teachers, a union that advocates and provides resources to more than 65,000 public school employees.

“Some districts have better reporting practices,” he said. “Some districts use it more as a proactive measure to ensure that behaviors don't escalate out of control across their campuses and their districts.”

Educators in Texas have options in the event of an assault. If physically assaulted, teachers may apply for assault leave. This leave is separate from workers’ compensation, does not use any accrued leave time and may even last for two years.

After an assault, the district employee may apply for assault leave and the district must grant it immediately. However, a KXAN analysis of school district policies found districts can retroactively deny the request if they determine the incident did not meet the criteria.

According to the Texas Association of School Boards, each school district tracks the type of leave employees use. KXAN requested assault leave data from 29 Central Texas school districts since the 2018-2019 school year. A total of 340 assaults were reported by district officials across the time frame requested. However, the districts received few requests for assault leave, with only 46 days collectively approved.

According to Capo, many teachers are unaware of assault leave. Even though the law states assault leave may last two years with no docked pay, Capo said he usually sees teachers granted hours or a few days to recuperate.

“It's the cases where they've been dismissed or they've been left to feel like this thing that happened to them didn't happen is where people get angry or where they're looking for, frankly, somebody to tell them that they're not crazy,” he said. “That this is wrong and that it shouldn't have happened and acknowledge their pain or acknowledge where they're at.”

Assault leave does not account for psychological or minimal physical injuries — such as bruising or soreness — which Capo explained is the majority of cases he encounters.

“There is nothing that stops any principal or any school district from giving each and every one of those individuals that were assaulted in the — in the examples that you used — a day, two days, three days off to heal,” he said.

Prior to an assault happening, however, teachers and district employees can rely on laws that allow them to safeguard themselves, their students and their jobs.

The Safe Schools Act, championed by Texas AFT, gives teachers the authority to remove disruptive students from the classroom and seek legal help if necessary.

Martha Owen, special counsel to Texas AFT, works with teachers who have sought legal counsel after being assaulted in the classroom. Whether the removal is temporary or permanent, teachers understanding their right to protect themselves in the classroom is necessary for their protection and getting students in a better environment, she said.

Jarrell ISD said schools need backing from the Texas legislature to secure funding and implement security measures and mental health resources.

“We have to work together to make our schools safe havens for both educators and students. Violence of any kind has no place in our educational system,” the statement said.

The spokesperson added the district has “implemented programs that help students with character development and professional growth to foster a positive, inclusive culture to meet students' academic and behavioral needs. We're proud to be proactive in addressing these needs, reinforcing our commitment to a supportive environment where both educators and students can thrive.”

Robinson got an email from the associate principal the day after she hit send on her resignation letter. In the email, which KXAN reviewed, the administrator acknowledged the “ongoing concerns” in her classroom and outlined that disciplinary action had been taken with the involved students.

While appreciated, it didn’t bring Robinson back to the classroom. She did not plan on retiring for several more years, but at 56, she’s swearing off teaching entirely and pivoting to real estate. Still, she feels she has unfinished business.

“I think that's the part I miss the most, is being able to change those kids lives,” she said. “Just one at a time, being able to help them.”

Robinson said she wished she received support when she initially voiced concerns to her administration.

“These things are happening in other schools,” she said. “It's getting closer and closer to home. It's almost like you're just waiting for it to break.”

'Absolutely too much,' proposed Monarch butterfly protections raise concerns for rural Texas

Texas' state insect, the black and orange-winged Monarch butterfly, could be granted federal protections after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed this week to list the animal as a threatened species.

The Service deemed the Monarch could reach endangered status and said the biggest threats against the butterfly are loss of habitat, exposure to insecticides, and the effects of climate change, according to the rule filed in the Federal Register.

Dr. Hayley Gillespie, the operations supervisor at the Austin Nature and Science Center, said the biggest threat to the butterfly is habitat loss. The Monarch needs wildflowers like the milkweed for its nectar and for laying its eggs when it passes through Texas on its way north from Mexico in the spring.

Gillespie said the eastern population of the Monarch has declined by 80 percent since 1990. "That's a huge population loss," Gillespie said.

The Service has listed out the proposed protections in the National Register. The Service is "prohibiting the following activities unless they fall within specific exceptions or are otherwise authorized or permitted: importing or exporting; take; possession and other acts with unlawfully taken specimens; delivering, receiving, carrying, transporting, or shipping in interstate or foreign commerce in the course of commercial activity; or selling or offering for sale in interstate or foreign commerce."

The proposed rule does allow landowners to remove milkweed, a food source for the Monarch, from their yards without any penalty. It does not allow for changes that will permanently make the land unusable for the butterfly.

It also has exceptions and allows for incidental kills, or when someone accidentally hits and kills a butterfly with their car. In California, the federal government is proposing creating designated critical habitat zones in 4,395 acres. There will be no such designation in Texas.

The Service is currently in the process of seeking public input on species-specific protections for the Monarch. These protections would be imposed in the Lone Star State, as Texas is a flyway for the eastern population of butterflies as they migrate to Mexico in the winter.

Sid Miller, the Texas Agriculture Commissioner, released a statement on Wednesday saying the proposal is "the latest example of federal government overreach which cripples agriculture and rural development."

Commissioner Miller said in the statement, "the designation would slap widespread restrictions on anything that might 'disturb' Monarch habitat, making it nearly impossible to build or expand in rural areas." He said this would impact dairies, wind and solar farms, airports, railways, and mining in the state.

The public input period lasts until March 12, 2025. This is the time for the public to provide its input on if the protections are too vast, or if exceptions are needed. Commissioner Miller said he will be sending in his concerns to the Service during the public input period. The proposed rule does allow for some exceptions like incidental killings, or if you accidentally hit and kill a butterfly with your car.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is currently already working on conservation efforts for wildflowers and Monarch habitats on state-owned land, but 94% of Texas land is privately owned. The department is also looking at creating innovative pest management plans with less harmful pesticides and herbicides that will not harm pollinators.

Gillespie said there are efforts individuals can take to help with conservation, even without a backyard. She suggested you can grow a milkweed plant in a pot on your apartment balcony.

"Any protections for pollinators like the Monarch will have big effects on all pollinators which can actually increase agricultural yields," Gillespie said.