Key facts
- Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison sued Texas Governor Greg Abbott.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has sued Texas Governor Greg Abbott to force the extradition of ICE agent Christian Castro, who faces assault and false reporting charges in Minneapolis. Castro faces potential release from Texas custody next week if not extradited.
The lawsuit highlights a dispute between states over the extradition of a federal agent, raising questions about interstate cooperation and the legal process for individuals charged with crimes across state lines.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has filed a lawsuit against Texas Governor Greg Abbott, seeking to compel the governor to sign an extradition warrant for an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent. The agent, Christian Castro, faces charges of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and falsely reporting a crime in connection with the January 14 shooting of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in Minneapolis.
Ellison stated that Castro, 52, is scheduled for release from jail in Texas next week, 90 days after his detention, under Texas law, unless he is extradited. The lawsuit asks a federal judge to bar the Cameron County Sheriff’s Office in Texas from releasing Castro and to order Abbott to sign the warrant, allowing Minnesota officers to take custody.
Prosecutors allege Castro fired a gun through the front door of a Minneapolis home, striking Sosa-Celis, and then falsely accused Sosa-Celis and another man of attacking him. Castro was arrested in Texas 11 days after the shooting.
Ellison and Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty had previously urged Abbott to sign the extradition request. Ellison warned he would sue if the warrant was not authorized by Monday. Ellison noted that if Castro is freed, he could potentially flee to Mexico, as he has reportedly been making calls from jail to a woman in Mexico about marrying her and buying property there.
"Christian Castro has been charged with breaking the law in Minnesota," Ellison said at a news conference Tuesday. "He must face justice in Minnesota. Governor Abbott should have granted [Minnesota] Governor [Tim] Walz’s extradition request long ago and is required to do so now."
A spokesperson for Abbott’s office declined to comment on "pending extradition matters." Moriarty noted that Texas has extradited three other defendants to Minnesota without incident since Castro's arrest.