CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Wednesday, Nueces County Commissioners will hear about research to help identify migrants who die during, or after crossing the border.
The director of the South Texas Human Rights Center, Eduardo Canales, said this research is already being conducted in a wide area of South Texas including, Starr county, Brooks county, Hidalgo, Cameron, and soon, in Nueces county. Canales said he will tell commissioners, and the public, how its working to identify victims at Nueces County Commissioners Court meeting Wednesday. He said all of South Texas does not have a medical examiner system. That means each county has a different way to recover and identify victims.
It all started in 2012, when families were reported loved ones missing in Brooks county. That's when Canales began organizing and advocating to ensure DNA testing is conducted on all unidentified human remains, as per Texas state law.
“Corpus Christi and Nueces county has an Medical Examiners system. They receive bodies from Brooks county. In fact, they once had a contract with Brooks county. They received bodies from Hidalgo whose lacking a forensics pathologist right now,” he said.
Canales said he hopes, after Wednesday's meeting, the protocols and practices will improve overall and one day there can be a human rights center in the region to assist all the surrounding communities.
The South Texas Human Rights Center also has a missing migrant hotline, you can call (361)325-2555 for assistance.
