Denton: Behind the Curtain – The Realities of Immigration Law with Eric Bales
January 21, 2025 @ 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm CST
Have you ever wondered how immigration court works or the asylum process? Ever wonder if illegal entrants are cutting in front of legal immigrants? Have you heard of Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) petitions? Like asylum, SIJ petitioners cut-in-line ahead of lawful immigrants. But unlike asylum, SIJ is something we can influence locally because it all starts with an elected family law judge.
We have invited Eric Bales, a former immigration judge, who now works as an immigration prosecutor targeting transnational gangs, to shed some light on these topics.
Tonight, Eric will pull back the curtains on immigration law and share his insights on key aspects that impact Texas in general and North Texas in particular.
Speaker: Eric Bales
Tuesday, January 21st
Denton County Commissioners Court, 1 Courthouse Dr. Denton, TX 76208
6:00pm – Prayer gathering (open to all)
6:30-8:00pm – meeting
No dues. No fees. No memberships. No RSVPs
About Eric Bales:
Eric Bales graduated from Tarrant County College in 1995, Texas A&M University in 1998, and Ave Maria School of Law in 2008. While in law school he wrote his Law Review Note on a complex immigration law issue and since graduating published two articles on international law in academic journals. In 2024, he earned a Master of Laws from Texas A&M School of Law in Fort Worth with concentrations in Cybersecurity Law and Advanced Criminal Law.
In 2008, he began his federal career as an attorney with U.S. Customs & Border Protection in Miami. Finding his way back to Texas in 2010, he served as Assistant Chief Counsel with U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement in San Antonio. In 2018, he was appointed by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions to be a U.S. Immigration Judge in Fort Worth. In 2019, however, he returned to his prosecution roots and is now back with ICE in the Dallas field office. He focuses particularly on disrupting transnational gangs—Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Tren de Aragua (TdA)—operating right here in North Texas. He has tried over 490 individual cases and 729 bond hearings, and briefed over 225 appeals.
Eric also serves as a Judge Advocate in the Texas Military Department. He was commissioned in the Texas Army National Guard 2014-2020, deploying with the 176th Engineer Brigade in 2016-2017. He continues that service to the State of Texas in the Texas State Guard (TXSG). He mobilized on State Active Duty orders to the Southwest Border in 2023 serving as the legal advisor to Task Force South in Harlingen.
