Minnesota AG suing Texas governor to force extradition of ICE agent

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison is suing Texas Governor Greg Abbott to force the extradition of the ICE officer who shot a man in north Minneapolis last January and then is accused of making false statements about the circumstances that led up to the shooting.

Lawsuit over extradition

What we know:

Ellison and Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced at a news conference on Tuesday a new lawsuit to bring about the extradition of ICE officer Christian Castro.

Dig deeper:

Castro was charged in Hennepin County in May with four counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of falsely reporting a crime in connection with the Jan. 14 shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis. He was arrested in Cameron County, Texas on May 29 on a nationwide warrant issued in Hennepin County. 

Moriarty wrote a letter in July asking Texas Governor Greg Abbott to immediately review and sign Castro's extradition paperwork. As of Tuesday, Castro remains in the Cameron County, Texas jail.

What's next:

If Abbott doesn't sign the order in the coming days, Ellison says Castro could be freed from jail as early as August 26 as a Texas limit expires.

"The urgency of this filing is that Texas law imposes a 90-day limit on the detention of fugitives awaiting extradition," explained Ellison. "This means that as early as August 26th, a week from tomorrow, 90 days after he was first captured and detained, Christian Castro could walk free from jail in Texas and flee justice in Minnesota, including by leaving the country."

Moriarty and Ellison both believe it's possible Castro could be a flight risk, saying Castro has connections to Mexico.

Ellison hopes a judge will block Castro's release.

No cooperation from Abbott

Big picture view:

Since the time Castro was arrested in June, Moriarty says Governor Abbott has signed three other extradition warrants for fugitives in Texas wanted by Minnesota.

However, Abbott has not responded to the Castro request despite efforts by the governor's office, Ellison's office and Moriarty's team. During a news conference, Moriarty did indicate that they had finally heard back from Governor Abbott's office on Tuesday but said the conversation was "vague."

"All of us have been trying to communicate with the governor's office down there, radio silence," said Moriarty. "However, there was a conversation, as I understand it today, and the conversation was somewhat vague on the part of the staff of Governor Abbott, but it was made clear that he does not intend to honor this request and that he seems to consider it, discretionary, but did not provide any case or any statute or anything to support that."

What they're saying:

When asked by FOX 9, Governor Abbott's office said they had no comment on the case.

ICE shooting in Minneapolis

The backstory:

In January, Castro was involved in a shooting in Minneapolis where he injured Sosa-Celis, striking him in the leg. Castro falsely claimed that he had been attacked with a broom and shovel before firing his service weapon. However, surveillance video proved those statements were false, prosecutors said, along with witness statements and evidence.

The shooting came a week after the deadly shooting of Renee Good and days before the deadly shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. The shooting of Sosa-Celis also resulted in a night of unrest in the neighborhood in north Minneapolis.