Texas National Guardsman allegedly shoots across U.S. border wounding man in Mexico

Texas National Guardsman allegedly shoots across U.S. border, wounding man in Mexico

EL PASO (CBSNewsTexas.com) - A soldier with the Texas National Guard allegedly fired a gun near the U.S.-Mexico border, hitting a 22-year-old man across the border in Mexico.

Mexican authorities and an advocate for human rights say the bullet crossed the border from El Paso on Saturday near the Bridge of the Americas.

It then struck the man in the leg in Ciudad Juarez.

According to the Border Network for Human Rights (BNHR), that man was not attempting to cross the border, but practicing sports with a group.

"We are deeply appalled by the actions of the Texas National Guard, which under Gov. Abbott's leadership has continued to usurp Federal authority and unleash unnecessary chaos at our southern border," said Fernando Garcia, Executive Director of the BNHR.

That man was taken to the hospital, treated and released.

Operation Lone Star has faced criticism from advocacy groups since it was launched two-and-a-half years ago.

In 2021, the ACLU of Texas filed a 50-page complaint urging the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate Governor Greg Abbott's Operation Lone Star migrant arrest program.

Last summer, Latino organizations criticized Abbott's Executive Order empowering National Guard members and State Troopers to return migrants to federal border crossings in Texas. The Biden administration was said to be investigating Operation Lone Star for alleged civil rights violations; however, Abbott blames the Biden administration for not securing the border and allowing drug cartels to smuggle in record numbers of people, weapons, and deadly drugs such as fentanyl.

In July, a state trooper's concerns about migrants being mistreated by Texas officers along the southern border went public. The State's Inspector General's office said it was looking into the matter.

Most recently, the controversial floating buoy barrier in the Rio Grande has drawn attention and criticism from state-level organizations to federal leaders.

We have reached out to the Texas National Guard for more details and to ask why the unnamed guardsman opened fire. We are waiting to hear back.