The landscape of criminal justice in Texas took a dramatic turn as Governor Greg Abbott designated the Venezuelan crime syndicate Tren de Aragua as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) under state law, a move logging in just a day before with his office in Austin, Texas; the Governor’s proclamation came in the wake of a litany of heinous acts committed by the organization’s members, actions that have splashed like blood across the canvas of American communities, drawing lines of sorrow and fear deep into the country’s psyche. With growing concerns over the cavalier crossing of the state’s southern border and the proliferation of unchecked transnational crime, Governor Abbott leaned into the legal powers provided by Senate Bill No. 1900, strengthening the hands of the law, as it wrestles with the shadows that slip through cracks in the system.