Minnesota sues Texas governor to force extradition of ICE agent

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison filed a federal lawsuit against Texas Governor Greg Abbott to compel the extradition of ICE agent Christian Castro, according to ABC News. Castro is accused of firing a gun at the front door of an occupied home in Minneapolis on January 14, striking a Venezuelan man in the leg, then lying about the circumstances of the shooting.

Castro was charged in May with four counts of second-degree assault with a deadly weapon and one count of falsely reporting a crime. A Hennepin County District Court judge found probable cause for the charges and issued a nationwide warrant for his arrest. Texas Rangers located and arrested Castro on May 29, after which a Cameron County judge ordered him detained pending extradition proceedings.

Four days after Castro's arrest, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz sent Abbott an extradition request. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has withheld a rendition warrant directing law enforcement to transfer Castro back to Minnesota for prosecution. Ellison said in a statement: "Now, Governor Abbott is trying to shield Castro from being held accountable for these serious charges by refusing to extradite him to Minnesota." Ellison also said: "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."

The lawsuit also alleges that Manuel Trevino, the sheriff of Cameron County, Texas, who is named as a defendant in the federal complaint, has failed to make Castro available for extradition. Ellison's office said the attorney general will also be requesting a temporary restraining order barring the Cameron County Sheriff's Office from releasing Castro.

The incident occurred during Operation Metro Surge, according to ABC News. The Cameron County sheriff declined to comment on the lawsuit.