Judge’s order shields Catholic Charities from deposition as Texas investigates border aid groups

A judge on Wednesday rejected Texas’ attempts to compel a deposition from one of the largest migrant shelters on the U.S.-Mexico border, dealing a new legal setback to a widening Republican-led investigation into migrant aid groups. The ruling by state District Judge J.R. Flores does not stop the state’s investigation into Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, which provides temporary housing for as many as 2,000 women and children when border crossings are at their highest. The border nonprofit is among several targeted by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over claims that aid groups are helping migrants enter the U.S. illegally. Catholic Charities and other organizations have denied the accusations, saying the state has produced no evidence. The one-paragraph order by Flores shields leaders of Catholic Charities from a deposition and is the second time in recent weeks that a Texas court has pushed back on the state’s investigation into migrant aid groups. Earlier this month, a separate judge in El Paso rejected the state’s efforts to close a shelter in a scathing order that accused the state of harassment.