Federal judge says government can deposit money to seize diocesan land for border fencing

The Diocese of Las Cruces, New Mexico, had asked a district court to block the deposit of the funds while it fights the governmentʼs attempts.

Amid a legal dispute, the federal government will be permitted to put down a six-figure deposit as it moves to acquire a large parcel of land from the Diocese of Las Cruces, New Mexico, in order to install fencing and other security measures along the U.S.-Mexico border.

U.S. District Judge Kenneth Gonzales said in a June 15 ruling the government could deposit the $183,071, which he said would “allow for the safekeeping of funds pending resolution” of the dispute.

The order represents a blow for the Las Cruces Diocese, which since May has been fending off the government’s attempt to seize the land under eminent domain.

The government says it seeks the land, located northwest of El Paso, Texas, “to construct, install, operate, and maintain roads, fencing, vehicle barriers, security lighting, cameras, sensors, and related structures designed to help secure the United States/Mexico border within the state of New Mexico.”

The diocese had sought to block the deposit of the funds amid the legal fight, but Gonzales said allowing the deposit will “not interfere with, alter, or nullify [the diocese’s] right to challenge the validity of the taking.”

The judge further argued that “transferring title [of the land] to the United States is in no way a final or irrevocable action that would deprive [the diocese] of an opportunity to contest the validity of the taking.”

The disputed land parcel runs along the base of Mount Cristo Rey. Atop of that mountain is a 29-foot-tall statue of Christ, marking a shrine the diocese said in May is the “site of annual pilgrimages” that draw thousands to the mountain.

The diocese had earlier told the government that the land seizure would “constitute a significant infringement on religious freedom and the rights of worship” given the religious significance of the site.