Texas Republicans OK arrest of Democrats who blocked voting bill

Dozens of Democratic legislators fled the US state last month to stop the passage of a bill they said would restrict voting rights.

A top Texas Republican legislator has signed civil arrest warrants for 52 Democratic legislators who fled the state last month to prevent the passage of a bill they say would restrict voting rights. The measure, which came on Tuesday night after Republican state lawmakers in Texas voted earlier in the evening to allow the arrests, permits authorities to detain and bring the legislators to the state capitol upon their return to Texas. Texas authorities have no jurisdiction to retrieve the legislators in Washington, DC, or elsewhere outside of Texas.