High-Speed Chases, Smuggling Crashes Take Toll on Small Border Town

Law enforcement and emergency personnel aid the driver and passenger of a truck that rolled and hit a house during a high-speed chase in Brackettville, Texas, on Feb. 18, 2022. Courtesy of Kinney County Sheriff’s Office

BRACKETTVILLE, Texas—Katherine Vasquez is thanking her lucky stars. 

Almost home after a morning walk with her dog, she heard a vehicle moving way too fast for the 30 mph speed limit. A quarter-mile away, an SUV was bearing down on her location so fast she barely had time to run across the road toward her house, frantically calling her dog to follow.