Trump-Appointed Judge Sides With Texas Over Minnesota in ICE Agent Case
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0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. A federal judge on Wednesday denied Minnesota 's emergency effort to force Texas Governor Greg Abbott to extradite former ICE agent Christian Castro, who faces felony charges over the shooting of a Venezuelan immigrant during an immigration operation in Minneapolis .
U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr., an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled that Minnesota had failed to meet the legal requirements for a temporary restraining order because Abbott has not formally rejected the state's extradition request and is still reviewing whether Castro should be surrendered.
The decision marks a significant victory for Texas in a closely watched interstate dispute that has drawn national attention amid heightened tensions over immigration enforcement. However, Rodriguez stopped short of endorsing Texas' position on the merits and signaled doubts about a key legal theory Abbott's administration is exploring.
Abbott’s Press Secretary, Andrew Mahaleris, told Newsweek that Rodriguez was right in rejecting Minnesota's "absurd claim."
"The Constitution requires deliberate consideration of extradition requests and tasks Governor Abbott to ‘decide, upon such evidence as he may deem satisfactory’ whether ‘the person demanded is a fugitive,'" Mahaleris said. "Today’s order rebuffs Minnesota’s efforts to conscript federal courts into commandeering the authority of Governor Abbott’s office.”
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, whose office filed the lawsuit against Abbott, said in a statement to Newsweek that this was about more than the one case.
“We are a nation of laws. It’s incumbent on all of us to uphold them," Walz said. "Texas has previously fulfilled every extradition—as has Minnesota—and this case should be no different.”
Newsweek reached out to the Hennepin County Attorney's Office for comment Wednesday afternoon.
Minnesota, led by Democrat Walz, argued that Abbott was effectively blocking extradition by failing to sign a rendition warrant more than two months after Texas authorities arrested Castro on Minnesota's warrant.
"The record before the Court, however, reveals that Governor Abbott has not denied the request for a rendition warrant," Rodriguez wrote. "Governor Abbott has neither agreed nor refused to sign the rendition warrant as to Castro."
The judge concluded that because Abbott requested an investigation by the Texas Secretary of State and has not yet made a final determination, the dispute is not legally ripe for federal court intervention. "Based on the current record, the Court concludes that it lacks subject matter jurisdiction because the case is not ripe for adjudication," he wrote.
Rodriguez also noted that neither the United States Constitution nor federal extradition law imposes a specific deadline for a governor to approve or reject an extradition request. "Neither the Extradition Clause nor either statute at issue contains such a requirement," he wrote.
Minnesota warned that Castro could be released from custody as soon as August 27 and argued that he may flee across the southern border if Texas does not act.
Court filings cited evidence that Castro has a romantic partner in the Mexican city of Progreso and had expressed an interest in purchasing property there and relocating in the future. Minnesota also alleged that Castro failed to disclose the relationship and previous travel to Mexico on federal employment paperwork.
The judge acknowledged those concerns. Rodriguez wrote that Minnesota had argued Castro's release could allow him to flee the U.S. and make prosecution substantially more difficult. The court agreed that such an outcome "would impose a hardship on Minnesota's prosecutorial efforts," but found that those concerns did not justify granting emergency relief.
At a hearing Tuesday, lawyers told the court Castro would be released unless Abbott issued a rendition warrant or a separate court order.
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Abbott has expressed concern about whether Castro qualifies as a "fugitive" because he reportedly returned to Texas under orders from ICE leadership after the January shooting. The Justice Department previously confirmed that federal officials directed Castro to leave Minnesota.
"The Court has doubts that caselaw supports the construction of 'fugitive' that Texas is considering," Rodriguez wrote.
Citing Supreme Court precedent, the judge added that "the focus rests not on the accused's reason for leaving the state, but simply on whether he in fact left."
That language could prove significant if the extradition fight returns to federal court.
Minnesota prosecutors charged Castro in May with four felony counts of second-degree assault and one misdemeanor count of falsely reporting a crime stemming from a January immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis. According to authorities, Castro fired a shot through the closed door of a home, striking a Venezuelan immigrant inside.
As Newsweek previously reported, relatives alleged agents deployed tear gas into the home after the shooting, while prosecutors have argued Castro's use of force was unjustified. Castro has denied wrongdoing, and his attorneys have argued he was acting within the scope of his duties as an ICE agent.
Based on the criminal charges, Minnesota obtained a nationwide arrest warrant, leading to his arrest in Texas in May.
While Texas prevailed in this round, Rodriguez left open the possibility that prolonged delays could eventually become a legal issue.
The judge wrote that he was not deciding whether an asylum…
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