Minnesota Takes Texas To Court Over Stalled Extradition Of ICE Agent Christian Castro

ST. PAUL, MN — Attorney General Keith Ellison sued Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday to force him to extradite Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Christian Castro, who is charged with shooting into an occupied Minneapolis home during Operation Metro Surge.

Castro faces four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime.

The case drew wide scrutiny after video evidenceappeared to contradict the federal government’s initial account of what happened.

Prosecutors allege that on Jan. 14, Castro fired a gun at the front door of an occupied Minneapolis home. The bullet struck a resident, identified in court filings as Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, in the leg and continued into a child's bedroom wall.

Castro is also accused of lying to another officer about the circumstances of the shooting.

Texas Rangers arrested Castro on May 29, and a Cameron County judge ordered him held pending extradition. Gov. Tim Walz sent Abbott an extradition request on June 2, but Abbott has not signed the rendition warrant needed to send Castro back to Minnesota.

Ellison sent Abbott a warning letter on Aug. 13 saying he would sue if Abbott did not act.

"Governor Abbott is trying to shield Castro from being held accountable for these serious charges by refusing to extradite him to Minnesota," Ellison said in a statement. "Abbott's refusal to extradite Castro is unconstitutional and violates federal law and Texas law. I will not stand for that, so I'm taking Abbott to court. Christian Castro will stand trial in Minnesota."

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty, whose office filed the criminal charges against Castro, said the case is not political.

"This is not about politics. It is about the law. This is not a legally discretionary task," Moriarty said. "Governor Abbott is required by law to sign the Governor's Warrant that has been with his office since June 3."

Abbott, a Republican seeking a fourth term as governor, faces a competitive re-election race against Democratic nominee Gina Hinojosa.

Ellison's office argues that interstate extradition is a ministerial process under the U.S. Constitution's Extradition Clause, citing the U.S. Supreme Court's 1987 ruling in Puerto Rico v. Branstad, which found that governors have no discretion to refuse an extradition request.

Minnesota sought extradition of 11 people from Texas over the past five years, and Abbott signed those rendition warrants in about 30 days on average, Ellison noted.

Texas sought extradition of 21 people from Minnesota over the same period, and Walz signed those warrants in under five days on average, including two since he requested Castro's extradition in June.

The lawsuit asks a court to declare Abbott's refusal unconstitutional, order him to sign the extradition warrant, bar Texas officials from releasing Castro before he is transferred to Minnesota, and require Texas to pay Minnesota's attorney's fees.