Court Freezes Big Bend Wall

El Paso — U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone on 2 October granted a preliminary injunction that immediately stops the federal government from building border barriers or related infrastructure, or doing any construction or ground-disturbing work, in the Big Bend Sector of West Texas until it complies with ordinary environmental and cultural-resource laws.

The written order in Friends of the Ruidosa Church v. Mullin also stays the effect of the so-called Big Bend federal waivers for as long as the injunction lasts. Those waivers — including measures published in the Federal Register earlier in 2026 for western stretches, the national park, and the Lower Canyons — had let the Homeland Security Department and Customs and Border Protection skip dozens of statutes that normally force agencies to study environmental harm and protect archaeological and historic sites before they dig.

A preliminary injunction is a temporary court order at the start of a case. It does not decide who finally wins. Cardone found that the plaintiffs are likely to succeed on at least one claim, that they face serious irreparable harm without a pause, and that the balance of equities and the public interest favour them. A longer memorandum explaining her reasoning is to follow.

Who sued and what is at stake

The plaintiffs are the Center for Biological Diversity, Friends of the Ruidosa Church — a historic-restoration group — and Big Bend river guide Billy Miller (also identified in some coverage as Danny Miller Jr.). They sued Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and related defendants in the Western District of Texas, El Paso Division. The Texas Civil Rights Project and the Center for Biological Diversity represent them.

The Big Bend Sector runs about 517 miles of the Southwest border. Marfa Public Radio reported that it accounted for only about 1.3 percent of Southwest border apprehensions in the last fiscal year — historically the least-trafficked sector. Expert Adam Isacson of the Washington Office on Latin America told the court the sector is a distant last place in crossings and drug seizures despite covering a large share of the border’s mileage.

Fortune described the wider Trump administration border build as a roughly $46 billion mix of 30-foot steel walls, vehicle barriers, roads and surveillance. In Big Bend, advocates say plans include vehicle barriers and access roads in Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park, and taller steel wall on private land outside the parks. Construction recently began on a new 30-foot steel wall in Hudspeth County east of El Paso. An earlier court-ordered pause covering much of the region, including the national park, expired on 30 September — making Cardone’s Friday order land just as that temporary shield fell away.

What the order does

Cardone’s signed order, filed 2 October, enjoins defendants “effective immediately and until the Court orders otherwise” from building border barrier or related infrastructure, or engaging in any construction or ground-disturbing activities, in the Big Bend Sector unless they comply with all applicable laws — “notwithstanding” the Big Bend Waivers. The effect of all Big Bend Waivers is stayed for the duration of the injunction.

Marfa Public Radio reported from the bench that Cardone’s oral ruling stopped construction for the entire sector within one mile of the Rio Grande and within state and national parks; the written order’s operative language covers the Sector as a whole until legal compliance. Inside Climate News likewise described a stop across the sector, including the national and state parks, while the April-filed lawsuit proceeds.

Customs and Border Protection said it stands by its assessment and remains “confident in our legal authorities to secure the border while preserving the unique landscape of the Big Bend region,” and that it is working with the Justice Department on next steps. Landowners told the court that planned walls would cut properties off from the Rio Grande. Miller said the wilderness of the Big Bend “saved my life.” Bill Addington of Hudspeth County described construction traffic near his family’s ranch as a “dystopian nightmare.”

What it is not

The order is a pause, not a final judgment on the merits. The government can seek to dissolve it or appeal. The case continues; Cardone has promised a fuller written opinion. For now, bulldozers in the Big Bend Sector must stop, and the waivers that short-circuited environmental and cultural review are on ice.