Federal Court Halts Implementation of Texas Sb 4, the State Law That Would Have Subjected all 12.6 Miilion Hispanics in Texas to the Show Me Your Papers Law

The Editor: Below is a link to the court decision that ordered a preliminary injunction against the execution of Texas SB 4, the state law that would permit all law enforcement officers to arrest, detain, charge, prosecute and sentence undocumented persons in state courts, including deporting said detainees on orders from state courts. Challenges to SB 4 :The case was previously heard in another case which went up to the 5th Circuit which ruled that SB 4 could be executed, with the execution date scheduled for Friday, May 15, 2026. The 5th Circuit ruled that the plaintiff in the original case lacked standing. Lacking standing, meant lacking a plaintiff, which prompted the ACLU to file another lawsuit which resulted in this latest ruling, a preliminary injunction to bar its execution. ChatGPT was kind enough to summarize the court order that granted the PI. The link to the full order can be linked to below, followed by the summary. The ruling is 78 pages long. The ruling comes from the federal court in Austin.

Next time you come across an Hispanic GOP representative or senator ask each how they voted to pass SB 4.

Case 1:26-cv-01170-DAE 

The Editor: Summarize the Court Ruling in Case 1:26-cv-01170-DAE

ChatGPT Response:

In Case No. 1:26-cv-01170-DAE, L.M.L. & K.G.S. v. Martin, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas issued a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of major portions of Texas SB 4, the state immigration enforcement law.

What the Court Decided

Judge David Alan Ezra held that key provisions of SB 4 are likely unconstitutional because immigration enforcement is primarily a federal responsibility under the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The court found that Texas likely cannot create and enforce its own parallel immigration-removal system where federal law already occupies the field.

Provisions Blocked

The injunction prevents Texas from enforcing provisions that:

• Criminalize certain re-entry or presence in Texas after denial of admission or removal from the United States.
• Allow state judges to issue removal-related orders under the challenged sections of SB 4.

Court’s Reasoning

The court concluded:

• The plaintiffs showed a credible threat that the law would be enforced against them, giving them standing to sue.
• Immigration regulation is an area dominated by federal authority.
• Allowing each state to create its own immigration system would interfere with national immigration policy and foreign affairs.

The opinion emphasized that:

it is “implausible to imagine each of the fifty United States having their own state immigration policy.”

What Was Not Blocked

The court did not stop enforcement of all SB 4 provisions. Texas may still enforce:

• Certain illegal-entry provisions involving border crossings outside ports of entry.
• Related probation/deferred-adjudication restrictions tied to those offenses.

Practical Effect

The ruling temporarily halts the most controversial enforcement portions of SB 4 while the litigation proceeds. Texas is expected to continue defending the law, and appeals are likely.