5 February 5 - 11, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents have only one set of clothes and complained about a lack of access to clean drinking wa- ter and educational materials. Representa- tives were told 1,100 people are currently being held in the Dilley facility. Over the last year, members of Congress have faced challenges when attempting to visit ICE facilities. According to ICE guide- lines in place before this month, a 24-hour notice was required before facility visits by members of Congress. On Jan. 8, however, the Department of Homeland Security insti- tuted a new policy requiring visits to be scheduled 7 days in advance. In a memo, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem defended the policy by describing a “trend” of lawmakers visiting facilities for “circus- like publicity stunts.” Congressman Joaquin Castro, who rep- resents parts of San Antonio, claimed that Ramos appeared “lethargic” during the visit and that Ramos’ father voiced concern for his son’s mental health. Ramos told the rep- resentatives he wants to return to school, Castro said. Both representatives said they are con- cerned about how long families are being held in the facility — some reported being detained in Dilley for months, Crockett noted — and the ages of the young children inside the center. In addition to many chil- dren of Ramos’ age, Castro said he spoke with the mother of a 2-month-old. “There are folks who are mentally bro- ken because of the trauma they’re experi- encing in Dilley,” Castro said. “All of those people are languishing there in that trauma and uncertainty because oftentimes ICE won’t tell them when their next court date. ICE won’t tell them what’s going to happen to them.” According to The New York Times, a fed- eral judge demanded that the father and son be released from detention on Jan. 31. The Ramos family came to the United States from Ecuador, and attorneys for the family state they entered the country legally and have fol- lowed the process for asylum seeking. The Department of Homeland Security has char- acterized their entering the U.S. as illegal. Calling for change within the Depart- ment of Homeland Security, Crockett urged her colleagues in the Senate not to vote for a six-bill package that would fund several fed- eral agencies, including DHS. Since Satur- day’s fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, the Minneapolis ICU nurse killed by border pa- trol agents, Democrats have threatened to initiate a government shutdown if the DHS funding is not stripped down. A vote is ex- pected on Thursday. “This is terrible what is happening, and I don’t know what it’s going to take for there to be a wakeup call in this country. But I’m here to tell you we are supposed to be better than this,” said Crockett. “If you allow this to continue to happen, then you are com- plicit.” EMMA RUBY Texas GOP reaction Other elected officials from Texas spoke about the immigration-related unrest in Minnesota following Pretti’s death at the handds of a Border Patrol Agent. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, one of President Donald Trump’s staunchest supporters and a longtime promoter of extreme tactics to prevent illegal immigration, spoke to Dallas radio host Mark Davis, where the conversa- tion turned to the events in Minneapolis. “In general, we need to have respect for law enforcement officers in the country,” Abbott said to the 660 FM host. “ICE [Im- migration and Customs Enforcement], they are law enforcement officers, and so that they, being the White House, need to recali- brate on what needs to be done to make sure that that respect is going to be reinstilled.” Many headlines emphasized the gover- nor’s “recalibrate” remark as a challenge to Trump; however, as he continued speaking, it became clear that Abbott was taking a shot at Minnesota’s Democratic leadership and Minneapolis, not the president. He placed the blame for the recent deadly violence on Gov. Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey, simi- lar to how other national Republican leaders have done in the past month. Sen. Ted Cruz became one of the first Re- publicans to call for an investigation into Pretti’s killing on an episode of his long-run- ning podcast. The senator resorted to broad generalities to make his point. “On one side, they view every shooting as an absolute tragedy, as evidence that Amer- ica has become Nazi Germany,” Cruz said. “On the other side, you see some people that seem pretty eager to celebrate a violent and lethal confrontation with law enforcement.” Even a basic request for an investigation from a well-known conservative lawmaker is notable. Republican leaders, including Trump, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino, have consistently stated that the officers involved in both the Pretti shooting and the Jan. 7 shoot- ing of protester Renee Good acted in accor- dance with their training and that the victims were in the wrong in both cases. An investigation into Pretti’s death would also be significant in that state and city offi- cials, following Good’s death, reported their various attempts at investigation were sty- mied by federal authorities. Cruz joined another Texas Republican, U.S. Rep. Michael McCall from Austin, who posted his desire for an investigation on X. “I am troubled by the events that have unfolded in Minneapolis,” McCaul wrote. “As an attorney and former federal prosecu- tor, I believe a thorough investigation is nec- essary — both to get to the bottom of these incidents and to maintain Americans’ confi- dence in our justice system.” Pretti’s death came just hours before a debate between Crockett and state Rep. James Talarico, who are seeking the Demo- cratic nomination for Cruz’s Senate seat. Al- though the unrest in Minneapolis was mentioned during the debate, both candi- dates have since taken to social media to speak more definitively about the matter. “First it was Renee Good. Then it was Alex Jeffrey Pretti,” Crockett posted on X. “Both U.S. citizens, both well-intentioned Minnesotans seeking to support their com- munities during this unlawful and unwar- ranted occupation. The question I have is how much blood does there have to be on this administration’s hands before the peo- ple with the power to check this govern- ment will step up?! Some Republicans’ silence is deafening and the others, their spin is sickening.” Talarico chose a succinct approach in connecting the dots between Good, Pretti and Liam Ramos. “ICE shot a mother in the face,” he wrote. “ICE kidnapped a 5-year-old boy. ICE exe- cuted a man on the street. It’s time to tear down this secret police force.” KELLY DEARMORE ▼ LGBTQ TOILET PATROL UNT GRADUATE STUDENT ‘INVESTIGATED’ UNDER NEW STATE BATHROOM LAW, SCHOOL POLICY. BY EMMA RUBY W hen the Texas Legislature passed a law restricting the use of pri- vate spaces, such as a bathroom, to one gender, LGBTQ+ advocates warned that complications would arise. The Legislature passed Senate Bill 8 in August, and the law went into effect on Dec. 4. The bill requires public facilities, such as universities, courts and government build- ings, to implement policies enforcing segre- gation based on biological sex in spaces like bathrooms and dorms. But the narrow defi- nitions of male and female, and the lack of guidance on implementing the policy, have led to early problems, according to a recent report from The North Texas Daily. University of North Texas graduate stu- dent Lhexa D’Avignon started her spring se- mester with a notice for a disciplinary investigation. According to an email shared with the Observer, D’Avignon was notified of the meeting with the University Integrity and Compliance office in December, when she was told she needed to arrange a time to be interviewed “as part of an investigation.” The email did not further clarify what the investigation pertained to. D’Avignon declined the Observer’s re- quest for an interview, although she did share a recording of her meeting with uni- versity officials. At the start of the recording, UNT Com- pliance Officer Clay Simmons tells D’Avignon that the university “received a re- port of an allegation of a violation of a pol- icy” that named the graduate student. Simmons clarifies the new bathroom policy, informing D’Avignon that she may use uni- sex, single-occupancy campus restrooms. According to The North Texas Daily, there are 156 single-occupancy restrooms across the thousand-acre campus. “We just wanted to talk to you about it to make sure you’re aware of it, so that you’re aware of what the rules are around here,” said Simmons. But as D’Avignon presses the university of- ficial, it becomes clear that the university hasn’t fully worked through how best to han- dle this new policy. At one point, D’Avignon, who also serves as a university teaching fel- low, asks whether she will be investigated as a faculty member or as a student. Simmons an- swers faculty, but the details on what actual penalties look like are slim. Then D’Avignon pushes against SB 8’s definition of female or male, which defines gender by organs that create sperm and or- gans that carry eggs meant to be fertilized. “How do you propose going about find- ing the information on this reproductive system?” D’Avignon asks. “I don’t,” says Simmons. “Then how can you carry out this pol- icy?” D’Avignon replies. Ultimately, Simmons tells D’Avignon that she is not being formally investigated, and adds that the university will not be doing “any kind of medical exams on anyone” to determine whether their genitals match the bathroom they are using. As reported by The North Texas Daily, D’Avignon is a member of a Denton-based transgender and nonbinary group known as “The Space,” and following her meeting with the university, she warned the group about the new policy. The University of North Texas did not re- spond to a list of questions from the Ob- server on the topic, but a university spokesperson told the Daily that UNT stu- dents and faculty are expected to comply with university policies or else face “disci- plinary action.” The Problem With SB 8 F rom SB 8’s inception, LGBTQ+ advo- cates have warned that the bill would result in state-funded institutions being forced to enact policy despite “an ab- sence of information,” as D’Avignon Adobe Stock How enforceable is an anti-trans bathroom bill in Texas, really? >> p6
