Greg Abbott says immigration enforcement can be achieved without shooting people
Greg AbbottGovernor of Texas
Gov. Greg Abbott told reporters in Houston that Texas does not want to see people shot, and that immigration laws can be enforced, and illegal immigration stopped, without shooting people. He said he fully expects immigration laws to be enforced.
“In Texas and across America, we don’t want to see people shot. Period That’s separate from whether or not the immigration laws are going to be enforced. I fully expect our immigration laws to be enforced, but it’s proven that immigration laws can be enforced and stopping illegal immigration from coming across our border can be achieved without shooting people.”
Reporting
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Was ICE justified in fatally shooting Lorenzo Salgado Araujo?
On July 7, 2026, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer fatally shot Houston construction contractor Lorenzo Salgado Araujo during an attempted vehicle stop. ICE said the officer fired in self-defense after Salgado Araujo tried to run over an officer with his van. Passengers said no officer was in the van’s path and that Salgado Araujo had stopped before the shot. A later Justice Department account described possible vehicle movement with an officer beside or partly inside the van but expressly reserved any final conclusion.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
Texas Tribune report on the governor's first public remarks about the July 7 ICE shooting in Houston, made to reporters on July 15, 2026.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting
About this source
Houston Chronicle report on the governor's announcement that the Texas Rangers would investigate, including the request from Houston's mayor and police chief the previous day.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
The July 15 remarks were Abbott's first public comments on the July 7 shooting, eight days after it. The day before, Houston's mayor and police chief had formally asked the Texas Rangers to investigate.
After the quotation
Abbott called any loss of life tragic and said the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Rangers would investigate the shooting alongside federal authorities. He also said the Rangers work independently.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case asks whether the ICE officer was justified in fatally shooting Lorenzo Salgado Araujo. Abbott said Texas does not want to see people shot and that immigration laws can be enforced without shooting people, which is criticism of shootings in enforcement. In the same remarks he said he expects immigration laws to be enforced, and he described the Texas Rangers' role as learning exactly what happened rather than saying whether this officer was justified. Because he combined those positions and left the justification of this shooting open, we labeled it Mixed or conditional.
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- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
More from this case
Read the full casePadilla co-signs letter citing Salgado Araujo's death as showing inadequate ICE use-of-force training
“On July 7, 2026, an ICE officer in Houston, Texas fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old construction worker and father of three, while he was driving a work crew to a job site. Witnesses have disputed DHS's account that Mr. Salgado Araujo used his vehicle as a weapon. ... These killings, combined with the whistleblower's account of corners cut on both vetting and training, make clear that officers hired during the surge did not receive adequate instruction in de-escalation, use-of-force standards, and vehicle-stop protocols before being sent into communities with the authority to use deadly force.”Read statement
Ronaldo Salgado questions the public-safety justification for pursuing his father
“How is going after my dad going to work making the city safer?”Read statement
Free Speech For People condemns the Salgado Araujo killing
Free Speech For People
“While the killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was the most horrific instance of criminality federal agents committed in Houston”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Greg Abbott says immigration enforcement can be achieved without shooting people". First published: 2026-09-30. Last updated: 2026-09-30. https://disputeindex.com/events/3429-gov-greg-abbott-told-reporters-in-houston-that