Latest news with #NMNDA
Yahoo
7 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Legal clash over military trespassing at New Mexico border heats up
May 29—An Uzbekistan national is at the center of an expanding legal battle over whether migrants illegally entering from Mexico can also be convicted of trespassing on New Mexico's new military border zone. On Wednesday, the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Mexico focused on the case of Dishoda Rozlkova in appealing the dismissal of the misdemeanor military trespass charges filed against her and hundreds of other defendants earlier this month. The issue now goes to a U.S. district judge for consideration. The U.S. Border Patrol encountered Rozlkova in Doña Ana County on May 4, about 7 miles east of the Santa Teresa Port of Entry, court records show. Court records reveal little else about her except that she speaks Uzbek. That meant she couldn't proceed in English or Spanish when she appeared in court May 8 in Las Cruces on charges of illegal entry, violating security regulations and entering military property. While maintaining the illegal entry charge, Gregory Wormuth, the state's chief U.S. magistrate judge, ruled May 19 that the government lacked probable cause to charge Rozlkova with knowing she was entering the restricted 60-foot-wide strip adjacent to the international border while she unlawfully entered the U.S. The area, which stretches an estimated 180 miles, became military property in mid-April after President Donald Trump directed the U.S. Department of Defense to incorporate it, as the New Mexico National Defense Area, into the U.S. Army Fort Huachuca installation based in Arizona. The White House wanted the military to take a more direct role in securing the border, the appeal states. But the action effectively increased the potential punishment for those charged with the misdemeanor of illegal entry into the U.S. The added offenses carry up to 18 months in prison combined. Often times, misdemeanor illegal entry results in brief jail time awaiting resolution of the case, followed by deportation. Rozlkova "argues that she did not violate these laws because she was not aware of the (national defense zone's) reassignment to the Department of Defense or the area's resulting status. That claim should have been rejected," states the appeal. "Virtually all aliens who enter the District of New Mexico from Mexico through an area that is not a designated port of entry — and thereby enter the ... restricted military area without authorization — are not 'engaged in apparently innocent conduct' but are instead aware of the unlawfulness of that conduct," the appeal states. Government prosecutors say Wormuth erred in requiring an "additional element of knowledge that the defendant has entered the NMNDA (defense zone)." Federal signs warning of the restricted military area reportedly have been posted in Spanish and English about every 100 yards in the zone, but some defense attorneys have contended their clients never saw the signs, couldn't read them, or spoke a different dialect or language and weren't aware they were trespassing. Rozlkova's attorney couldn't be reached for comment Thursday, but Rozlkova is believed to be in federal custody awaiting a translator. U.S. Attorney for New Mexico Ryan Ellison is asking the district court to overrule Wormuth's order and reinstate the dismissed charges. To date, nearly 700 people have been charged with the military trespass-related misdemeanor charges, along with illegal entry.
Fox News
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Federal magistrate judge dismisses trespassing charges against 98 arrested in new military zone
Dozens of immigrants who illegally crossed into the U.S. via a newly established military-controlled zone along the U.S.-Mexico border have had their trespassing charges dismissed. Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Gregory Wormuth began filing the dismissals late on Wednesday, ruling the immigrants did not know they were entering the military zone – known as the New Mexico National Defense Area (NMNDA) – and therefore could not be charged, according to court documents. Wormuth ruled that the federal government failed to demonstrate probable cause that the immigrants knew they were entering the zone. The government had argued in a criminal complaint that the military had posted signs in the zones stating in both English and Spanish that it was a restricted area and that unauthorized entry is prohibited. Despite signs indicating restricted access, the judge noted that the challenging terrain made it unlikely that the defendants saw the warnings. The decision marks a setback for the Trump administration's border crackdown as the trespassing charges were central to enforcing the NMNDA. READ THE ORDER – APP USERS, CLICK HERE: The NMNDA was established in April and spans approximately 180 miles along the southern New Mexico border. U.S. Army personnel now patrol the area and are authorized to detain unauthorized entrants. "Beyond the reference to signage, the United States provides no facts from which one could reasonably conclude that the Defendant knew he was entering the NMNDA (New Mexico National Defense Area)," wrote Wormuth in a 16-page ruling. Wormuth has served as a U.S. magistrate judge since 2009. Magistrate judges are appointed by district court judges and not by the president. The judge dismissed two charges faced by the 98 arrested immigrants: violation of a security regulation and entering military property for an unlawful purpose, both misdemeanors. A third misdemeanor charge of entering the U.S. illegally remains. Up to May 9, Ellison's office reported charging 339 migrants for entering the New Mexico military area. Last month, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum visited New Mexico to announce that the Army was taking control of the federal land as part of the Trump administration's efforts to curb illegal immigration and trafficking. The 109,651 acres of federal land was transferred to the Army for three years, subject to valid existing rights. The switch in jurisdiction allows the government to protect sensitive natural and cultural resources in the region, while helping the Army support U.S. Border Patrol operations in securing the border and preventing illegal immigration, according to the Department of the Interior. In March, the Defense Department authorized the military to patrol the southern border to provide "enhanced detection and monitoring" to support U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Fox News Digital emailed and called a Department of Justice attorney involved in the case for comment.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Federal judge dismisses trespassing charges against 98 people arrested in new military buffer zone along Southwest border
A federal magistrate judge has dismissed trespassing charges against 98 people who were arrested along the Southwest border for entering the newly created National Defense Area in New Mexico that the Trump administration considers an extension of an Arizona military base. U.S. Magistrate Judge Gregory B. Wormuth ruled Wednesday, in 98 separate filings, that the federal government had failed to demonstrate that the individuals, who were undocumented migrants, knew they were entering the New Mexico National Defense Area that stretches along 170 miles of public land in New Mexico and is considered a part of the Fort Huachuca Army base in Arizona. A separate zone, stretching along 50-60 miles of public land in Texas, was recently set up a few weeks ago. MORE: To stop migrants, US Army to take control of some of border with Mexico The new buffer zone spanning Arizona and New Mexico mostly stretches 60 feet deep into U.S. territory though in some locations the zone stretches much deeper due to the terrain. Under the Trump administration's policies, military personnel are allowed to temporarily detain anyone who enters the marked area, which is considered to be a military base. Those detainees can then be turned over to local law enforcement. According to the original criminal complaint, the military had posted signs in the zones stating in both English and Spanish that it was a restricted area and that unauthorized entry is prohibited. However, the judge said there was no evidence, given the often difficult and mountainous terrain, that the defendants had actually seen the signs. "Beyond the reference to signage, the United States provides no facts from which one could reasonably conclude that the Defendant knew he was entering the NMNDA (New Mexico National Defense Area)," the judge wrote in a 16-page ruling dismissing the case against one of the 98 people charged. "Consequently, the Criminal Complaint fails to establish probable cause to believe that Defendant knew he/she was entering the NMNDA." MORE: What to know about birthright citizenship as Supreme Court weighs blocks on Trump's order to end it The judge's decision dismisses two charges faced by the 98 migrants arrested -- violation of a security regulation and entering military property for an unlawful purpose -- both misdemeanors. A third misdemeanor charge of entering the U.S. illegally remains. The same language in the judge's decision is used in individual filings for the 98 people who had been charged. The New York Times first reported the dropped charges. Federal prosecutors can choose to refile the trespassing charges, which carried a possible one-year sentence. President Donald Trump announced the plans for the "National Defense Areas" last month in a presidential memo laying out what he called the military mission "for sealing the Southern border of the United States and repelling invaders." ABC News' Jack Moore contributed to this report. Federal judge dismisses trespassing charges against 98 people arrested in new military buffer zone along Southwest border originally appeared on
