So on that basis the official documents are presumed to be illegitimate and adult women can be held indefinitely? Or does Texas have a duty to recognize the official acts of other states, as mandated by the Constitution? The legal presumptions of innocence are intended to protect the innocent. They are not to be ignored by anybody simply because they have suspicions.
For how long are you willing to detain an adult woman against her will in order to prosecute a rape you suspect was committed against her?
Texas is not required to regard ID documents as “official acts of other states” when it has reason to believe the documents may contain false information and were not authorized by the state in question. Same goes for real state-issued ID documents obtained fraudulently by illegal aliens. No state is required to put aside common sense when evaluating ID documents. Many, if not most, of the women and children had given different names to interviewers at different times. When those women/children then produce ID documents matching only one of the names they’d given, the state of Texas is not required to suddenly forget the other names the same individuals had claimed as their own.
With documents such as birth certificates, which contain no information that can be verified as matching the document to the individual presenting it, there is plenty of reason for skepticism on the part of authorities. In some cases, Texas authorities would have been able to confirm age with reasonable certainty after having the opportunity to check multiple sources of information and see if they match — that would include government-issued IDs, the “Bishop’s Record” and other documents found at the ranch, and the results of medical analysis of X-rays. No doubt this is why there has been some delay between certain young women’s original presentation of a government_issued ID document, and CPS certification of the young woman as being over 18.