Spiller border bill reaches Abbott’s desk

A controversial border security bill guided by Rep. David Spiller, R-Jacksboro, made it to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk during the Legislature’s fourth special session. Rep. Spiller recently made the rounds of news outlets to explain how it differs from an Arizona law that the U.S. Supreme Court mostly struck down in 2012.

Ironically, the Enterprise talked to Rep. Spiller about Senate Bill 4 as he left the Young County Courthouse, where he was acting as a court-appointed attorney for a man accused of entering Texas illegally in a human trafficking operation.

The Enterprise: Can you explain how this bill is different from Arizona’s immigration bill from 2010 which some believed allowed police to racially profile Latinos?

Rep. Spiller: There were portions of what Arizona tried to do that are preempted by federal law, and one of them was the idea of ‘show me your papers’ … where law enforcement could just round anybody up that might be in violation of federal law and the Supreme Court said, ‘No, you can’t do that. That’s not proper review. That’s preempted by federal law.’

What we have done here with SB 4 is make it very specific that if you are an alien … you commit an offense if you enter or attempt to enter this state directly from a foreign nation in any location other than a lawful port of entry. A port of entry is a defined term under federal law … we have several of those throughout the state. [SB4] makes it a Class B misdemeanor offense, which is exactly what federal law provides for the same offense.

I don’t believe it’s unconstitutional because … as stated by the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in his partial concurrence in the Arizona case …. All states have the constitutional right, authority and ability to protect their borders.

The Enterprise: How will the new law work?

Rep. Spiller: It’s a statewide law but the reality of it is probably 95 percent of it is going to be within 50 miles of the border. Most of these are going to be people who are seen to cross the border illegally or it’s clear they just crossed the border illegally.

This is a Class B misdemeanor which means the limitation period is two years as with any misdemeanor. The officer would have to be able to prove that either through a plain view assessment they saw them cross - or we have electronic monitoring that showed they crossed, or we have other means to prove that they crossed illegally.

This law is not geared toward arresting someone’s grandmother who has been here for 50 years. You can only look back for two years and if the officer can’t prove their case then you can’t be prosecuted.

A law enforcement officer who has probable cause to believe that each and every element of that offense has occurred will not only arrest that person but will take him to an independent magistrate. The magistrate will give them the opportunity to return to the country from which they arrived illegally. They will be ordered back and if they somehow change their minds or refuse to comply with the order, that is a felony offense.