A 21-year-old Peruvian woman, Adely Vanessa De La Cruz-Alvarez, was acquitted by a federal jury of illegally entering a national defense area near Tornillo, Texas, after crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico. She was arrested under new charges tied to the Trump administration’s designation of parts of the Texas-New Mexico border as military zones. De La Cruz-Alvarez was convicted only of illegal entry and sentenced to time served, but faces likely deportation. The court found insufficient evidence that she knowingly trespassed on restricted military land, with unclear signage cited as a factor. Federal prosecutors say they will continue similar prosecutions despite this setback.
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A federal jury and judge acquitted a 21-year-old woman from Peru on Thursday of illegally entering a national defense area and military reservation after she crossed the Rio Grande from Mexico into Texas last month, in what lawyers say is the first trial of an immigrant since the Trump administration declared parts of the New Mexico and Texas border as a military zone.
Adely Vanessa De La Cruz-Alvarez was detained by soldiers and arrested by a Border Patrol agent on May 12 after they found her alone sitting next to the gate on a bollard wall near Tornillo, 40 miles east of El Paso.
“Hopefully, this sets the tone for the federal government,” said Veronica Teresa Lerma, one of her defense attorneys, adding, “so they know what the El Paso community will do with these charges.”
Earlier this year, the Trump administration designated 180 miles of the New Mexico border with Mexico and 63 miles in West Texas as a national defense area, overseen by U.S. Army commands based out of Fort Huachuca in Arizona and Fort Bliss in El Paso.
At the start of the trial, De La Cruz-Alvarez, who has been in immigration agents’ custody since her arrest, faced three misdemeanor charges: entering the country illegally, violating national defense property and trespassing onto a military base. She was found guilty of entering the country illegally and was already facing deportation as soon as she was arrested.
She was sentenced to time served plus one business day by U.S. Magistrate Judge Laura Enriquez. Even though she was acquitted of trespassing onto a military zone, De La Cruz-Alvarez will most likely get deported, said Shane Michael McMahon, her public defense attorney.
“She knew exactly what she was doing,” Phillip Douglas Countryman, the federal prosecutor, told the judge, asking for a 45-day jail sentence. Crossing the border illegally “should come with some sort of punishment.”
The verdict is the latest blow to the Trump administration, which pursued additional misdemeanor charges in addition to the usual misdemeanor charge of entering the U.S. improperly or the felony charge of reentering the country after being denied. Tacking on the trespassing charges, is the latest tactic the administration is trying in its attempt to deport and punish 1 million immigrants annually, including some who have entered the country legally.
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Since late April, federal prosecutors in New Mexico and West Texas have filed misdemeanor criminal charges of violating national security regulations and entering restricted military property, in addition with entering the country without permission against immigrants accused of crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally. But judges quickly began dismissing the charges in both states.
Federal judges have said federal prosecutors have not shown evidence that immigrants broke into a national defense area knowingly and warning signs posted along the newly created national defense areas are not visible enough for people to know they’re on military land.
Typically, misdemeanor cases are presented directly to a judge, who determines whether prosecutors have presented evidence to charge a person with those crimes. In this case, the U.S. Department of Justice asked for a jury trial.
Countryman declined to comment. U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas, said Thursday’s verdict will not discourage the administration from continuing these prosecutions.
“While we respect the jury’s verdict, we will continue to aggressively prosecute National Defense Area violations and defend the interests of the United States here in the Western District of Texas,” Simmons said in a statement. “At the end of the day, another illegal alien has been found guilty of illegally entering the country in violation of the improper entry statute and will be removed from the United States. That’s a win for America.”
At the end of this trial, De La Cruz-Alvarez broke down in tears, hugged her lawyers and said, “Thank you.”
“The whole time I sat next to her, I saw a brave and strong person for taking on the Trump administration and its immigration policies,” said Lerma.
During the three-day trial that began Tuesday, Countryman and Debra P. Kanof, another prosecutor in the case, argued that De La Cruz-Alvarez knew that she entered the U.S. illegally and that a small sign near the gate was enough for her to know she was on U.S. Army property.
Enriquez disagreed.
On Wednesday, the judge dropped one of the three counts related to stepping into the national defense and restricted area, a misdemeanor that carries a potential sentence of up to a year in jail, if convicted.
“Simply put, the court does not believe there is evidence that would rise to the requirement of this statute,” Enriquez said.
During the trial, De La Cruz-Alvarez, a 5-foot-tall, 116-pound woman with long black hair, wore a long black dress and sat stoically, with a headset listening to interpreters translate the proceedings.
At the heart of this case was whether the warning sign was visible to De La Cruz-Alvarez and if the sign was even up when she crossed the border.
“The biggest problem with this zone is that it’s a trap,” McMahon said.
During testimony, McMahon held a replica sign that appeared to be 1 foot wide by 2 feet tall. He held up the sign, asking the Border Patrol agent who arrested De La Cruz-Alvarez if he could read it.
The agent said he had a hard time reading it until McMahon held the sign approximately 10 feet away from the agent. Edgar Contreras, a Border Patrol agent, testified he couldn’t remember whether the sign was up when he arrested De La Cruz-Alvarez.
The court proceedings were filled with tension.
During the jury selection process, Enriquez asked potential jurors if they could set aside any biases regarding immigration or sympathy for De La Cruz-Alvarez and come to a verdict based solely on the facts and evidence of the case.
A woman, who claimed during juror questioning that she had been briefly denied entry to the U.S. after visiting Canada even though she is a U.S. citizen, responded: “She’s an illegal, what rights does she have?” referring to De La Cruz-Alvarez. Another man questioned why De La Cruz-Alvarez was even getting a trial: “I think this is all a waste of time, she’s an illegal, alien, undocumented — whatever you want to call them.”
Neither of them was selected for the jury.
During testimony, the mere mention of Trump elicited annoyance from Kanof. When McMahon referred to the border barrier as Trump’s wall, Kanof asked the judge to keep the defense attorneys from bringing up politics.
During closing arguments, Kanof pointed out that when De La Cruz-Alvarez was arrested, she had makeup on, $500 in cash and had notified Border Patrol agents she was heading to Miami.
“As a woman, that tells me something, that she’s privileged,” Kanof told the jurors.
Lerma quickly interjected, asking the judge to instruct the jury to ignore Kanof’s description of De La Cruz-Alvarez because that wasn’t part of the evidence. Enriquez agreed, instructing the jury not to take into consideration Kanof’s comment.
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Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Left
This article primarily reports on the legal case of an immigrant facing charges related to crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, focusing on courtroom developments and perspectives from defense attorneys, prosecutors, and judges. While the reporting is factual and balanced, the framing highlights criticisms of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement tactics and emphasizes the challenges faced by immigrants, which aligns more closely with center-left viewpoints on immigration. The language and selection of quotes tend to sympathize with the defendant’s position and question the fairness of the administration’s policies, without explicitly endorsing a partisan agenda. Overall, the tone remains mostly neutral but leans toward a center-left perspective in its emphasis and context.
SUMMARY: David Beckham, former England soccer captain and longtime UNICEF ambassador, is reportedly set to receive a knighthood from King Charles III in next week’s honors list, recognizing his soccer career and societal contributions. Beckham, already an OBE recipient since 2003, will become “Sir David,” while his wife Victoria will be “Lady Beckham.” Beckham’s achievements include scoring in three World Cups, captaining England 59 times, and playing for major clubs like Manchester United and Real Madrid. He has faced past criticism but remains a style icon, charity supporter, and co-owner of the MLS team Inter Miami. The knighthood aligns him with elite football legends.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Bethany Blankley | The Center Square contributor – (The Center Square – ) 2025-06-06 15:54:00
A group of 58 House Republicans urged Gov. Greg Abbott to veto SB 646, a bill expanding state-funded loan repayment for mental health professionals. The bill, authored by Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas), increases loan repayment amounts for various mental health workers, especially those serving rural areas or speaking languages other than English, and allocates \$1 million for advertising. Republicans criticized it as a “Biden style” expansion of loan programs and opposed student loan repayment programs broadly. West defended the bill, citing Texas’ severe shortage of mental health professionals across many counties. Separately, 41 House Republicans urged veto of SB 974 over potential conflicts of interest in property tax appraisal boards.
(The Center Square) – A group of House Republicans has called on Gov. Greg Abbott to veto a Democratic-authored bill related to expanding state-funded loan repayment programs for a range of mental health professionals.
SB 646 filed by state Sen. Royce, West, D-Dallas, would amend state law to expand and increase financial assistance provided through the Mental Health Professionals Loan Repayment Program.
It would increase the amount of loan repayments for physician psychiatrists, licensed clinical social workers, professional counselors, advanced practice registered nurses and a wide range of licensed social workers and counselors, according to the bill analysis. It also would increase the amount of awards to those who speak languages other than English and for those who practice in rural areas. It also allocates $1 million to the MHPLRP for advertising.
The majority of House Republicans, 58, voted against it. Thirty-four of them called on the governor to veto the bill.
The bill “expands a Biden style student loan repayment program,” House Republicans, led by Rep. Brent Money, wrote in a letter to the governor. “58 republican members voted against this bill and in opposition to student loan repayment programs. There are many laudable things that the legislature funds and expands during the session but few that received such significant opposition as SB 646. We humbly ask that you veto this legislation and in so doing encourage the legislature to make ‘loan repayment programs’ and their expansion something we have to avoid in future sessions.”
West argued the program was necessary to help more mental health professionals enter the field “given Texas’ stark shortage of mental health professionals.” The existing program isn’t helping meeting the shortfall, he says, which “remains critical.”
Of Texas’ 254 counties, 168 don’t ‘have any licensed psychiatrists; 147 don’t have any psychologists; 91 don’t have licensed clinical social workers; 78 don’t have licensed chemical dependency counselors; 41 don’t have licensed professional counselors; 211 don’t have psychiatric-mental health advanced practice registered nurses (as of 2019 data) and 148 school districts don’t have any school counselors, according to the bill analysis.
Earlier in the week, a group of 41 House Republicans called on Abbott to veto a bill they argue will only help increase property taxes, The Center Square reported.
SB 974, filed by state Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D-Austin, passed the legislature with bipartisan support. It would allow school board members and school district employees to serve on appraisal review boards, the entities responsible for assessing property tax appraisal challenges.
Those who voted against it argue it “establishes a clear conflict of interest … An employee who is paid by a school district should not be involved in the processes of determining the value of property that is taxed to generate funding for the district.”
Abbott previously vetoed similar legislation in the last legislative session.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
The article primarily reports on recent legislative developments in Texas, detailing both the positions and actions of Democratic lawmakers who proposed the bills and the Republican opposition to them. The language used is neutral and factual, presenting the content of the bills (SB 646 and SB 974), the arguments from both sides, and relevant statistics without loaded or emotive wording. The inclusion of direct quotes from Republican representatives and Democrats, and the provision of context around the votes, suggests an intent to inform rather than advocate for one side. Thus, the article presents the ideological positions of the parties involved without exhibiting a clear ideological stance or bias itself.
www.youtube.com – FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth – 2025-06-06 15:23:45
SUMMARY: Kilmar Abrego Garcia was returned from El Salvador to the U.S. to face serious charges of alien smuggling and conspiracy, following a May 21 grand jury indictment in the Middle District of Tennessee. Over nine years, Garcia allegedly led a full-time smuggling ring trafficking thousands, including women and children, involving MS-13 gang members, firearms, and narcotics. He is also linked to the deaths of over 50 migrants in a 2021 Mexico truck overturn. Authorities praised international cooperation and law enforcement efforts, affirming Garcia faces prosecution and possible imprisonment in the U.S. before deportation to El Salvador. This move addresses ongoing legal and immigration enforcement issues.
Attorney General Pam Bondi announces charges against Kilmar Abrego Garcia.