www.thecentersquare.com – By Bethany Blankley | The Center Square contributor – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-29 16:07:00
(The Center Square) – Of the top 100 convicted criminals arrested during President Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office, 15 were arrested in or committed crimes in Texas, the most of any state.
The next greatest numbers were arrested by ICE agents in New York and California despite state opposition, according to an analysis of the data by The Center Square.
The White House on Monday posted mugshots of 100 convicted criminals who are all in the country illegally and deported by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement. Thousands have been arrested and deported under Trump’s mass deportation plan, but the administration erected posters of “the worst of the worst criminal illegal immigrants arrested” on the White House lawn “for the world to see – highlighting the Trump Administration’s unprecedented effort to secure our homeland and send these vicious criminals back where they belong,” the White House said.
The top 100 represent the types of violent criminals being arrested nationwide – those convicted of violent crimes of murder, homicide, rape, aggravated battery, multiple types of sexual assault and abuse of a minor, kidnapping, multiple sex offenses, assault with a firearm, fentanyl distribution, child pornography, drug possession, among others.
The most arrested were connected to Texas. They were arrested by ICE agents in Texas, convicted for committing crimes in Texas or in other states, or they were arrested by federal agents in other states after committing crimes in Texas.
Top of the list was Mexican national Apolinar Islas Hernandez, arrested by ICE El Paso agents, convicted of murder and aggravated battery in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Next was Indian national Raju Varugheses Vayechaparampil, arrested by ICE Houston agents and convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child in Harris County, Texas.
The greatest number of arrests on the list from Texas were made by ICE Houston agents (6), followed by those made by ICE Dallas agents (5).
ICE Houston agents arrested Honduran national Eduardo Garcia-Cortez, convicted of murder in Los Angeles County, Calif.; Guatemalan national Che Xol Norberto, convicted of indecency with child sexual contact in Harris County; Mexican national Roberto Fernandez Gomez, convicted of murder in Travis County. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison and had a removal order from 2007.
ICE Houston agents also arrested Cuban national Osvaldo Diaz, a registered sex offender, convicted of trespassing and sexual assault/battery of a child in Florida, with a removal order from 2007. They also arrested Mexican national Rogelio Hernandez, convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child and sentenced to 12 years in prison.
ICE Dallas arrested Mexican national Carols Ambriz Estrada, convicted of deliberate homicide in Helena, Montana; Mexican national Miguel Angel Lopez-Hernandez, convicted of assault-person with semi-automatic firearm and sexual penetration with an object with force in Riverside, Calif.; Burmese national Tay Myint, convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child in Cactus, Texas. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison and had a removal order from 2019.
ICE Dallas agents also arrested Mexican national Bernave Pineda Bustamante, convicted of sexual assault of a child and sentenced to 10 years in prison; and Nicaraguan national Cesar Augusto Delgado-Sanchez, convicted of sexual assault/strong arm and lewd lascivious acts with a minor and sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Also on the top 100 list were those arrested in Austin, Denver and Calexico, Calif., after being convicted of crimes in Texas.
In Austin, ICE agents arrested Mexican national Humberto Ruiz-Zapata, convicted of Driving While Intoxicated and murder; he had a removal order from 2017.
In Denver, ICE agents arrested Mexican national Juan Nieves, convicted of sexual assault, sex offenses against a child, obstructing police and Driving Under the Influence of alcohol in Houston County, Texas.
In Calexico, ICE agents arrested Salvadoran national Jose Douglas Pineda-Argueta, convicted of indecency with a child in Harris County. He had a removal order from 2015.
Some of the most egregious convictions listed include crimes committed against children. U.S. House Democrats voted against deporting such offenders last fall.
In order to assist federal deportation efforts, Trump issued executive orders on Monday targeting sanctuary jurisdictions and providing support to local police, and his National Counterterrorism Center identified 1,200 alleged terrorists illegally in the U.S.
At a press briefing on Monday, Trump’s border czar Tom Homan said Trump’s border policies were “making America safe again,” The Center Square reported.
In Trump’s first 100 days, illegal immigration is down 96%, with the U.S. having “the most secure border in the history of this nation,” Homan said. Referring to reduced illegal crossings as a metric of border security, he said, “the numbers prove Trump’s policies are saving lives every day.”
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-Right
The article reports on the actions and policies of the Trump administration regarding deportations and border security, with an emphasis on the arrests made by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The content highlights the administration’s efforts to arrest and deport violent criminals, particularly those in the country illegally, with a focus on crimes committed in Texas. The framing of these actions, along with the use of specific terminology like “mass deportation plan” and “making America safe again,” suggests a support for the administration’s policies. Additionally, there is a mention of opposition from House Democrats, further signaling the ideological divide. The article adheres to factual reporting but leans toward a more pro-administration stance, aligning with a Center-Right viewpoint. It does not present an extreme ideological perspective but focuses on promoting the successes of Trump’s border and immigration policies.
SUMMARY: On July 4, Krista Parker’s 6-year-old son, DJ, nearly drowned at Paragon Casino Resort in Louisiana. Despite DJ’s fear of water, he suddenly went lifeless by the pool. Krista and her husband performed CPR and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, eventually reviving him as water was expelled from his lungs. DJ was taken to Rapides Women’s and Children’s Hospital, where he recounted a near-death experience of seeing angels and God, strengthening his family’s faith. He now wants to be named Avir, meaning “air” in Hebrew, reflecting his experience. DJ suffered no lasting physical harm, emphasizing the importance of CPR training and water safety.
feeds.texastribune.org – By Terri Langford, Dan Keemahill and Hayden Betts – 2025-07-10 17:52:00
Following devastating July 4 flooding in Kerr County that killed nearly 100, officials blamed taxpayer resistance for the lack of flood warning sirens along the Guadalupe River. Despite awareness since 2016 of flood risks and the need for a $1 million warning system, political conservatism and a tight tax base stalled progress. An application for FEMA funding was denied due to the absence of a hazard mitigation plan, and the county’s $10.2 million American Rescue Plan Act funds were largely spent on public safety radio systems, not flood warnings. Local leaders and residents now push to install sirens for future safety.
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In the week after the tragic July 4 flooding in Kerr County, several officials have blamed taxpayer pressure as the reason flood warning sirens were never installed along the Guadalupe River.
“The public reeled at the cost,” Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly told reporters one day after the rain pushed Guadalupe River levels more than 32 feet, resulting in nearly 100 deaths in the county, as of Thursday.
Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly speaks during a press conference at the Hill Country Youth Event Center in Kerrville on Saturday July 5, 2025. Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune
A community that overwhelmingly voted for President Donald Trump in 2016, 2020 and 2024, Kerr County constructed an economic engine on the allure of the Guadalupe River. Government leaders acknowledged the need for more disaster mitigation, including a $1 million flood warning system that would better alert the public to emergencies, to sustain that growth, but they were hamstrung by a small and tightfisted tax base.
An examination of transcripts since 2016 from Kerr County’s governing body, the commissioners court, offers a peek into a small Texas county paralyzed by two competing interests: to make one of the country’s most dangerous region for flash flooding safer and to heed to near constant calls from constituents to reduce property taxes and government waste.
“This is a pretty conservative county,” said former Kerr County Judge Tom Pollard, 86. “Politically, of course, and financially as well.”
County zeroes in on river safety in 2016
Cary Burgess, a local meteorologist whose weather reports can be found in the Kerrville Daily Times or heard on Hill Country radio stations, has noticed the construction all along the Guadalupe for the better part of the last decade.
More Texans and out-of-state residents have been discovering the river’s pristine waters lined with bald cypress trees, a long-time draw for camping, hiking and kayaking, and they have been coming in droves to build more homes and businesses along the water’s edge. If any of the newcomers were familiar with the last deadly flood in 1987 that killed 10 evacuating teenagers, they found the river’s threat easy to dismiss.
“They’ve been building up and building up and building up and doing more and more projects along the river that were getting dangerous,” Burgess recalls. “And people are building on this river, my gosh, they don’t even know what this river’s capable of.”
By the time the 1987 flood hit, the county had grown to about 35,000 people. Today, there are about 53,000 people living in Kerr County.
In 2016, Kerr County commissioners already knew they were getting outpaced by neighboring, rapidly growing counties on installing better flood warning systems and were looking for ways to pull ahead.
During a camp evacuation ahead of rising floodwaters, a Seagoville Road Baptist Church bus was swept into the Guadalupe River near the town of Comfort during the July 17, 1987 flood. Forty three people — four adults and 39 teenagers — were washed into the river. Ten teenagers died. Credit: The National Weather Service
During a March 28 meeting that year, they said as much.
“Even though this is probably one of the highest flood-prone regions in the entire state where a lot of people are involved, their systems are state of the art,” Commissioner Tom Moser said then. He discussed how other counties like Comal had moved to sirens and more modern flood warning systems.
“And the current one that we have, it will give – all it does is flashing light,” explained W.B. “Dub” Thomas, the county’s emergency management coordinator. “I mean all – that’s all you get at river crossings or wherever they’re located at.”
Kerr County already had signed on with a company that allowed its residents to opt in and get a CodeRED alert about dangerous weather conditions. But Thomas urged the commissioners court to strive for something more. Cell service along the headwaters of the Guadalupe near Hunt was spotty in the western half of Kerr County, making a redundant system of alerts even more necessary.
“I think we need a system that can be operated or controlled by a centralized location where – whether it’s the Sheriff’s communication personnel, myself or whatever, and it’s just a redundant system that will complement what we currently have,” Thomas said that year.
“The purpose of this project is to provide Kerr County with a flood warning system,” the county wrote in its application. “The System will be utilized for mass notification to citizens about high water levels and flooding conditions throughout Kerr County.”
But the Texas Division of Emergency Management, which oversees billions of FEMA dollars designed to prevent disasters, denied the application because they didn’t have a current hazard mitigation plan. They resubmitted it, news outlets reported, but by then, priority was given to counties that had suffered damage from Hurricane Harvey.
Political skepticism about a windfall
All that concern about warning systems seemed to fade over the next five years, as the political atmosphere throughout the county became more polarized and COVID fatigue frayed local residents’ nerves.
In 2021, Kerr County was awarded a $10.2 million windfall from the American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, which Congress passed that same year to support local governments impacted by the pandemic. Cities and counties were given flexibility to use the money on a variety of expenses, including those related to storm-related infrastructure. Corpus Christi, for example, allocated $15 million of its ARPA funding to “rehabilitate and/or replace aging storm water infrastructure.” Waco’s McLennan County spent $868,000 on low water crossings.
“I’m here to ask this court today to send this money back to the Biden administration, which I consider to be the most criminal treasonous communist government ever to hold the White House,” one resident told commissioners in April 2022, fearing strings were attached to the money.
“We don’t want to be bought by the federal government, thank you very much,” another resident told commissioners. “We’d like the federal government to stay out of Kerr County and their money.”
When it was all said and done, the county approved $7 million in ARPA dollars on a public safety radio communications system for the sheriff’s department and county fire services to meet the community’s needs for the next 10 years, although earlier estimates put that contract at $5 million. Another $1 million went to sheriff’s employees in the form of stipends and raises, and just over $600,000 went towards additional county positions. A new walking path was also created with the ARPA money.
While much has been made of the ARPA spending, it’s not clear if residents or the commissioners understood at the time they could have applied the funds to a warning system. Current Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, and Thomas have declined repeated requests for interviews. Moser, who is no longer a commissioner, did not immediately respond to a Texas Tribune interview request.
Many Kerr County residents, including those who don’t normally follow every cog-turn of government proceedings, have now been poring over the county commissioners meetings this week including Ingram City Council member Raymond Howard. They’ve been digging into ARPA spending and other ways that the county missed opportunities to procure $1 million to implement the warning system commissioners wanted almost 10 years ago, and to prevent the devastating death toll from this week.
A week ago, Howard spent the early morning hours of July 4 knocking on neighbors’ doors to alert them to the flooding after he himself ignored the first two phone alerts on his phone in the middle of the night.
In the week since, the more he’s learned about Kerr County’s county inaction on a flood warning system, the angrier he has become.
“Well, they were obviously thinking about it because they brought it up 20 times since 2016 and never did anything on it,” Howard said, adding that he never thought to ask the city to install sirens previously because he didn’t realize the need for it. “I’m pretty pissed about that.”
Harvey Hilderbran, the former Texas House representative for Kerr County, said what he is watching play out in the community this week is what he’s seen for years in Texas: A disaster hits. There’s a rush to find out who’s accountable. Then outrage pushes officials to shore up deficiencies.
It’s not that Kerr County was dead set against making the area safer, Hilderbran said. Finding a way to pay for it is always where better ideas run aground, especially with a taxbase and leadership as fiscally conservative as Kerr’s.
“Generally everybody’s for doing something until it gets down to the details paying for it,” Hilderbran said. “It’s not like people don’t think about it … I know it’s an issue on their minds and something needs to be done.”
Howard, the 62-year-old Ingram city council member, came to Kerr County years ago to care for an ailing mother. Although he has now been diagnosed with stage four cancer, he said he intends to devote his life to make sure that his small two-mile town north of Kerrville has a warning system and he already knows where he’s going to put it.
“We’re going to get one, put it up on top of the tower behind the volunteer fire department,” he said. “It’s the thing I could do even if it’s the last thing I do …to help secure safety for the future.”
The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.
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-Right
This article presents a mostly factual and balanced overview of Kerr County’s flood warning system challenges within a politically conservative community. It highlights the county’s strong conservative stance on limited government spending and skepticism toward federal aid, reflecting typical right-leaning priorities such as fiscal conservatism and wariness of federal involvement. The coverage is careful to present multiple perspectives, including official statements and local residents’ concerns, without overt editorializing or ideological framing. The tone and content suggest an objective report focused on local governance dynamics rather than promoting a partisan agenda, though the conservative context is clearly emphasized.
www.kxan.com – Abigail Jones – 2025-07-10 12:34:00
SUMMARY: Devastating floods in Texas have caused significant damage and at least 120 deaths, with many still missing. Central Texas wildlife is struggling too. All Things Wild Rehabilitation in Georgetown is caring for over 500 animals affected by the floods, including orphaned, injured, and displaced wildlife. The nonprofit urgently needs donations, volunteers, and more land to continue its work. They have already admitted nearly as many animals in 2025 as all of last year, emphasizing the ongoing impact of extreme weather. All Things Wild provides extensive care and safely releases animals back into natural habitats. They encourage public support and offer guidance for reporting injured wildlife.