Dangerous chases of vehicles thought to contain migrants under the Texas government’s Operation Lone Star program led to crashes that killed at least 74 people and injured at least another 189 in a 29-month period, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.
The findings indicate the monthly death rate is at least 45 percent higher than media and civil rights groups previously reported, and that injuries and property destruction are substantially worse.
The 77-page report, “So Much Blood on the Ground: Dangerous and Deadly Vehicle Pursuits under Texas’ Operation Lone Star,” documents the spike in vehicle chases by Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and local law enforcement in the 60 most heavily affected Texas counties implementing Governor Greg Abbott’s Operation Lone Star program. Records reveal that in several counties, unnecessary vehicle chases have increased by over 1,000 percent since the program began. Human Rights Watch found that residents in these counties are disproportionately affected by law enforcement vehicle pursuits and crashes.
“Operation Lone Star puts undue pressure on law enforcement to chase cars, sometimes with very little basis, resulting in deaths of drivers, passengers, and even bystanders,” said Norma Herrera, a Texas-based consultant to Human Rights Watch. “Our review of the cases over 29 months identified at least 7 bystanders killed in these car crashes, including a 7-year-old girl out to get ice cream with her grandmother.”
Operation Lone Star is a multifaceted program of border militarization. Recently, the program received international condemnation for deploying razor wire and buoys with circular saws in or near the Rio Grande to keep migrants out of the US. The program also includes arresting and prosecuting people for state trespassing or smuggling charges, involving lengthy detention. While pursuing arrests under Operation Lone Star, Texas troopers and local law enforcement often chase vehicles for misdemeanor traffic violations.