BROOKS COUNTY, Texas — It appears that the plan to build an immigrant processing center in Brooks County is now dead.
Brooks County Attorney David Garcia had been in talks with Department of Public Safety officials concerning the project. To help solidify the deal, Garcia requested that the logistics of the agreement be officially documented.
DPS officials could not agree to those terms.
Garcia said the plan was for DPS to send hundreds of State Troopers to Brooks County. The troopers would be responsible for locating and arresting migrants for trespassing across private ranch land. Garcia lamented that he needed to hire more staff to handle the hundreds of new cases expected to flow through his office.
According to Brooks County Sheriff Benny Martinez, the State of Texas is looking elsewhere to house the project.
"I think they're looking at Webb County. That's what I've heard from DPS themselves," Martinez said. "I believe that's where it's going to go in. It's again up to the DPS to see which way they want to go."
Garcia said he was always willing to prosecute the cases, but he needed a written agreement from the State agreeing to cover all the costs associated with the plan.
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