The Nation Institute`s extensive report

“Crossing the Line at the Border” IMPACT List of Attachments 1. John Carlos Frey authors “Death Along the Border” for the Los Angeles Times, which runs in conjunction with the first Need to Know broadcast, April 20, 2012. 2. Presente.org, a civil rights group, launches a national petition drive, citing the broadcast, which attracts 36,000 signatures. 3. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, a former Border Patrol chief, writes to Attorney General Eric Holder calling for transparent investigations into border deaths, May 7, 2012. 4. Sixteen members of Congress write to the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of the Inspector General and Attorney General Eric Holder calling for investigations of the Border Patrol, citing the Need to Know broadcast, May 10, 2012. 5. AP reports that a federal grand jury has been convened to probe Hernandez’s death, July 12, 2012. 6. John Carlos Frey authors an investigative story on Salon, “Cruelty on the Border,” which runs in conjunction with the second Need to Know broadcast, July 20, 2012; El Diario publishes a Spanish-­‐language version the same day. 7. The Southern Border Communities Coalition, a civil rights group, holds a press conference calling for a federal investigation of Customs and Border Protection, citing the second Need to Know broadcast, July 23, 2012. 8. Six members of Congress issue a public statement in response to the second Need to Know broadcast, expressing “grave concerns,” July 26, 2012. 9. The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of the Inspector General opens an investigation of the Border Patrol’s use of force, the Los Angeles Times reports, October 17, 2012. 10. Customs and Border Protection launches a comprehensive internal review of its use of force policy, the Los Angeles Times reports, December 7, 2012. What’s going on with the Border Patrol? Insufficient training and little public oversight have led to problems, including violence against migrants. April 20, 2012 | By John Carlos Frey, Los Angeles Times U.S. Border Patrol agents monitor the area near the U.S.-­‐Mexico border in San Diego on March 21. (Sam Hodgson / Bloomberg / April 19, 2012) In 2007, the Bush administration set out to double the size of the U.S. Border Patrol. It was a tall order and called for some creativity, with the Border Patrol even sponsoring its own racing vehicle at NASCAR events as a recruitment tool. Because recruits were hard to find, Border Patrol — part of the Department of Homeland Security — also lowered its standards and training regimens were relaxed. Individuals without a high school diploma could already join the force, but background checks were also deferred. For the vast majority of applicants, lie detector tests, which were previously common practice, were similarly omitted. In less than two years, 8,000 new agents were hired. The Border Patrol force was 11,000 strong in 2007 and now numbers more than 21,000 agents. So by my calculations, nearly half of the Border Patrol force today consists of people with just a couple of years of experience or less. This rookie force is armed with batons, pepper spray, Tasers, rifles and handguns. At their disposal is an array of technology, from ground and night sensors to unmanned drones and Black Hawk helicopters. And because border officials are part of the Department of Homeland Security, they are not subject to the same public scrutiny as police officers. By policy, border officials do not make their use-­‐of-­‐force protocol public. When they can fire a weapon and why is kept secret. With insufficient training and little public oversight, perhaps it's no surprise that since May 2010, there have been at least eight documented cases of extreme use of force against unarmed and non-­‐combative migrants resulting in death. Families and advocates of the victims seeking answers have been met with silence. The cases, some more than 2 years old, remain under investigation and therefore the Justice Department is not forthcoming with details. The story of Anastacio Hernandez Rojas, 42, an undocumented immigrant who came to the United States at the age of 16, is just one example of a law enforcement agency using deadly force without repercussion. I learned of his case while researching and reporting a television segment about the Border Patrol and its use of excessive force. Hernandez lived and worked in San Diego for more than 25 years, raising his five U.S.-­‐born children. In May 2010, in the process of being deported for being undocumented, Hernandez was severely beaten and shocked with a Taser and killed. The segment features new video from witnesses who watched as Hernandez, handcuffed and lying on the ground, was surrounded by about 20 border officials. One witness on the Mexico side of the border said the agents were hitting Hernandez with their batons over and over again while other agents punched and kicked him. A Border Patrol supervisor arrived on the scene, but instead of intervening, he permitted the agents to continue. Another official yelled at the officers to clear away from Hernandez's body before shooting Hernandez with his Taser. Before he fired, the agent yelled "Quit resisting!" despite the fact that Hernandez lay handcuffed on the ground. The command was likely intended for the ears of the gathering crowd of witnesses. In the video, you can hear Hernandez cry, "Ayudame, por favor, ayudame" (Help me, please, help me). People began to shout at the officers, asking them to stop. At one point, an officer tied Hernandez's ankles before the beating continued. All told, witnesses say, the attack lasted nearly 30 minutes. The same witnesses told me Hernandez offered little or no resistance. One said she felt like she was watching someone being murdered — a conclusion later confirmed by the San Diego coroner's office, which classified the death as a homicide. As a result of the brutal beating, Hernandez suffered a heart attack. An autopsy also revealed several loose teeth; bruising to his chest, stomach, hips, knees, back, lips, head and eyelids; five broken ribs; and a damaged spine. Hernandez's case isn't unique. Sergio Adrian Hernandez Guereca was 15 years old when he was shot and killed by a Border Patrol agent in 2010. He was standing in Mexico while the agent fired his weapon from the U.S. side of the border. In 2011, Ramses Barron Torres, 17, and Jose Alfredo Yanez, 40, were shot and killed in Mexico while Border Patrol agents were on the U.S. side. Border Patrol reports state that these three victims were shot and killed for throwing rocks — an act, according to a Border Patrol official, that is considered a use of deadly force. Carlos La Madrid, 19, a U.S. citizen, was shot three times in the back. According to the Border Patrol, La Madrid had bales of marijuana in his car and evaded pursuit by trying to jump over the border fence into Mexico. The Border Patrol shot him because he was throwing rocks — a difficult feat for someone climbing a fence. Of the eight recent killings, none has proceeded to trial and no agents have been disciplined. The victims' families have sought answers and explanations from the U.S. government but have received no comments in return. The violence against Hernandez and others, and the lack of any accountability in the wake of this violence, point to a disturbing trend. There are 21,000 Border Patrol agents who are trained to use deadly weapons. And without proper oversight and open investigations, the number of migrant killings and incidents of extreme and unwarranted violence continue to rise. John Carlos Frey is a documentary filmmaker. He reported on the death of Anastacio Hernandez Rojas for an investigation produced by the PBS news program "Need to Know" in partnership with the Investigative Fund at the Nation Institute. It airs April 20 on PBS stations. http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-border-force-20121208,0,2852489.story
AP NewsBreak: Grand Jury Probes Border Death Posted on July 11, 2012 By ELLIOT SPAGAT Associated Press SAN DIEGO July 12, 2012 (AP) A federal grand jury is investigating the death of an illegal immigrant from Mexico who was shot by U.S. border authorities with a stun gun, suggesting the government is considering criminal charges after more than two years of silence on the politically charged case. Eugene Iredale, an attorney representing the family of victim Anastasio Hernandez, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he understood attorneys from the U.S. Justice Department’s civil rights division have been presenting evidence to the grand jury. A person other than Iredale who is close to the Hernandez family said two eyewitnesses to the incident have been called to testify Thursday in San Diego. The person, who spoke directly with the witnesses, requested anonymity because grand jury proceedings are supposed to be secret. One expected witness is Humberto Navarrete, whose grainy cellphone video at the San Ysidro port of entry captured audio of a man believed to be Hernandez pleading for help and passersby asking that he be left alone, one person said. The other was a companion of Navarrete that night. Mitchell Rivard, a Justice Department spokesman, said the case remains under investigation and declined further comment. Hernandez, 42, was shot by agents in May 2010 at the busy border crossing as he was being returned to Tijuana, Mexico. Mexican President Felipe Calderon joined a chorus of critics who complained of excessive force by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials, none of whom have been publicly identified. An autopsy by the San Diego County coroner’s office found Hernandez died of a heart attack, with a heart condition and methamphetamine use listed as contributing factors. The autopsy said Hernandez was unresponsive shortly after he was shot with a stun gun, apparently three or four times. The coroner’s report, citing a San Diego police detective, said Hernandez was “agitated and confrontational” after he was detained by Border Patrol agents crossing the border illegally and became “suddenly violent” when his handcuffs were removed at the border crossing. It is unclear if the evidence being presented to the grand jury will lead to criminal charges or who is the target of the investigation. Still, the convening of a grand jury suggests the government is interested in bringing charges. “When a prosecutor looks at a case, you can decide no crime has been committed, you close the case and move on. That obviously hasn’t happened in this case,” said Peter Nunez, a former U.S. attorney in San Diego who is not involved in the case. “The fact that there’s a grand jury means it has progressed to the next level, if you will.” Nunez cautioned that prosecutors may have determined there wasn’t enough evidence to justify charges but sought political cover with a grand jury. “This case has so much publicity attached to it,” he said. “You can see a prosecutor saying, ‘There’s not enough evidence to justify criminal charges … I’m going to present the case to the grand jury, with the idea that the grand jury may decide not to indict.’ The prosecutors are shielded from criticism to some degree.” The decision to present evidence to a grand jury and potentially charge Customs and Border Protection officials comes at a time when the Justice Department and Attorney General Eric Holder are under intense criticism from Republicans for a botched gun-­‐tracking operation known as Fast and Furious. In that operation, agents of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Arizona abandoned the usual practice of intercepting all weapons they believed to be illicitly purchased. The agents in Fast and Furious lost track of several hundred weapons. In 2010, Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed in a firefight with a group of armed Mexican bandits and two guns traced to the operation were found at the scene. Navarrete released his cellphone audio to reporters immediately after Hernandez died. The investigation attracted renewed scrutiny and criticism less than three months ago after another eyewitness video that aired on PBS appeared to show Hernandez being shot while lying on the ground, surrounded by about a dozen agents. Sixteen members of Congress wrote Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to say Hernandez’s death “may be emblematic of broader structural problems.” It is extremely rare for U.S. border authorities to face criminal charges for deaths or injuries to migrants. In April, federal prosecutors said there was insufficient evidence to pursue charges against a Border Patrol agent in the 2010 shooting death of a 15-­‐year-­‐old Mexican in Texas. ——— Associated Press writer Alicia Caldwell in Washington contributed to this report. http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/jul/11/ap-­‐newsbreak-­‐grand-­‐jury-­‐probes-­‐border-­‐death/ Denuncian cultura de crueldad en la
frontera
POR: John Carlos Frey/Especial para EDLP | 07/20/2012 | El Diario
Revelan que agentes destruyen botellas de agua dejadas para quienes cruzan.
Nueva York - Miles de cuerpos han aparecido durante años en las zonas fronterizas del
suroeste de Estados Unidos. El aumento en la vigilancia de la frontera ha llevado a
migrantes a probar suerte en apartados cruces del desierto. En el vasto terreno,
desconocido y hostil, muchos se pierden y se quedan sin agua, con consecuencias
devastadoras. En lo que va de este año, 94 cuerpos sin vida han sido recuperados, sólo
en Arizona.
Desde 2004, el grupo religioso "No Más Muertes" deja galones de agua cerca de las
rutas migratorias más comunes, en un intento desesperado por salvar vidas. Pero en
mayo, en el duro desierto de Sonora donde la temperatura llega a superar los 100
grados Fahrenheit, los voluntarios del grupo han notado que sus botellas de agua han
sido rotas, destruidas o vaciadas. Ante la sospecha de que los rancheros de la zona
podrían ser los culpables, "No Más Muertes" decidió instalar cámaras secretas. Se
sorprendieron de lo que encontraron: los agentes de la Patrulla Fronteriza a propósito,
incluso alegremente, destruían los galones de agua.
El video -que será transmitido por primera vez esta noche a las 8:30 p.m. en el programa
de PBS "Need to Know", (Necesita Saber)- muestra a tres agentes de la Patrulla
Fronteriza caminando por una ruta migratoria y acercándose a unos seis galones de
agua. Un agente se detiene delante de uno los contenedores y comienza a patearlo con
fuerza hacia un barranco. Las botellas se estrellan contra las rocas y se revientan. Los
agentes se ríen, y parecían disfrutar con el espectáculo. Uno dice algo en voz baja, pero
se escucha la palabra "tonk". Un agente me dijo que la palabra es un término despectivo
que refiere al sonido de linterna al ser golpeada contra la cabeza de un migrante: "tonk".
Tras destruir todos los envases de agua, los agentes siguen su camino.
El evento no era un caso aislado. Un voluntario de "No Más Muertes" se había quejado
varios meses antes con Lisa Reed, el enlace comunitario de la Patrulla Fronteriza de
Tucson, que los contenedores de agua estaban siendo destruidos por los agentes. Reed
respondió entonces con un correo electrónico diciendo: "Estoy preparando un
memorándum del jefe a todos los agentes para que no toquen el agua". Los agentes
filmados, o bien nunca recibieron el memorandum, o lo ignoraron.
Más allá del desierto
Conocí a Demetrio, un emigrante de Veracruz de unos veinte años, quien fue detenido
por la Patrulla Fronteriza. Al momento de su captura, estaba perdido en el desierto de
Arizona sin agua ni comida desde hacía tres días. Cuando llegó a oficina de la Patrulla
Fronteriza de Tucson, explicó a los agentes que se sentía enfermo y tenía fiebre. "Les
dije que necesitaba ver a un médico... y me dijeron que no", mencionó. "Uno de ellos
dijo: Ponlo ahí y déjalo morir". Contó que lo metieron en una celda superpoblada. "El
estaba vomitando sangre y se sintió tan débil que apenas podía soportar. No se le dio
comida ni agua durante seis o siete horas", dijo.
El protocolo de la Patrulla Fronteriza requiere que los agentes proporcionen a los
detenidos alimentos, agua potable, y servicios médicos de emergencia para mantenerlos
en condiciones humanas y que se abstengan de hacer comentarios degradantes, pero
esto rara vez es respetado en la práctica, dicen los defensores de los derechos
humanos. En los últimos 20 años, Amnistía Internacional, la ACLU, No Más Muertes,
incluso las Naciones Unidas han publicado informes que documentan abusos contra los
derechos humanos a manos de agentes de la Patrulla Fronteriza. En los últimos dos
años, al menos 14 migrantes y residentes han muerto presuntamente a manos de
agentes de la Patrulla Fronteriza. La práctica parece ser sistemática y asciende a lo que
No Más Muertes llama "una cultura de la crueldad".
El Departamento de Seguridad Nacional afirma que sólo tres denuncias de condiciones
de detención fueron presentadas contra la Patrulla Fronteriza en 2010 (los datos más
actuales), en un año cuando los agentes detuvieron a más de 463,000 personas. Sólo 10
quejas fueron presentadas por "abuso de autoridad" y 13 por discriminación. Una
solicitud hecha el mes pasado a través de la ley de libertad de información pública para
acceder al registro de estas quejas, así como a las acciones disciplinarias tomadas por
la Patrulla Fronteriza, aún no genera respuesta.
Viaje a Nogales
Así que hice un viaje a Nogales, México, para visitar la Iniciativa Fronteriza Kino, otro
grupo religioso que ayuda a migrantes. El Padre Sean Carroll dirige la organización y
supervisa los servicios de refugio, clínica y comedor. "No es todos los agentes", dice
Carroll. "Pero institucionalmente, hay problemas".
Logré reunirme en Nogales con unos 75 inmigrantes, casi todos deportados recientes,
durante su desayuno a la 9 a.m. Les pregunté si alguna vez se les había negado comida
o agua, o encerrado en celdas sobrepobladas. Si habían sido abusados física o
verbalmente, y si alguien les había negado atención médica. En cada pregunta, más de
50 de ellos levantó las manos. Así, en una sola mañana, sólo en esa ciudad, hubo más
denuncias por supuestos abusos que las compiladas por la Seguridad Nacional.
En Nogales también escuché a migrantes mujeres jóvenes decir que habían recibido
nalgadas por parte de agentes que las revisaban. Otras dijeron que habían sido
pateadas, las habían llamado prostitutas, o les habían dicho que olían peor que perros.
Demetrio contó un incidente devastador que presenció y fue corroborado por otro de los
detenidos. Vio cómo un joven migrante fue sacado de su celda por no entender una
orden gritada en inglés. Luego lo obligaron a arrodillarse sobre tapas de botellas con los
brazos extendidos. "Lo obligaron a permanecer así por más de tres horas", explica
Demetrio. Si él bajaba los brazos debido a la fatiga, los agentes le gritaban y lo
obligaban a mantenerlos debidamente alzados. Agentes cubrieron las cámaras de
vigilancia con cajas de galletas durante el incidente, según Demetrio.
El exagente de la Patrulla Fronteriza, Efraín Cruz, dijo que algunos oficiales, bajo la
dirección de supervisores, obligan a los detenidos a permanecer en media sentadilla o
"posiciones de estrés", hasta que ya no puedan soportar.
En sus nueve años de trabajo en la frontera cerca de Tucson, Arizona, Cruz dijo que
también vio detenidas "a personas de pie, hacinados en celdas al doble de su
capacidad", a pesar de haber celdas vacías cercanas. En 2003, Cruz comenzó a advertir
a sus superiores de este patrón de abuso. Luego escribió cartas al jefe de sector, a la
Procuraduría General y, finalmente, a miembros del Congreso. Cruz dejó la fuerza en
2007, sin haber recibido una respuesta.
La patrulla de Fronteras y Aduanas (CBP) en Washington respondió en términos más
generales: "CBP destaca el honor y la integridad en cada aspecto de nuestra misión",
dijo un portavoz de la agencia por email. "No toleramos el abuso dentro de nuestras filas
y ... estamos totalmente comprometidos con la protección de los derechos de salud y la
seguridad de todos con quienes nos relacionamos", indicó.
Las políticas adecuadas parecen estar en su lugar. La pregunta es si se cumplen.
-John Carlos Frey reporta sobre inmigración en The Investigative Fund at The Nation
Institute e inició la historia sobre Anastasio Hernández.
http://www.eldiariony.com/Una_cultura_de_la_crueldad_en_la_frontera#.UPCWA4njkmQ
New Investigation Reveals Torture, Abuse by Border Patrol: Activists Respond in D.C. on Wednesday Contact: Ricardo Favela, (760) 468-­‐4519, [email protected] What: Press conference calling for an agency wide investigation of Customs and Border Protection following PBS Need to Know report. Who: Former Border Patrol Agent, Ephraim Cruz. A delegation of the Southern Border Communities Coalition including SBCC Director, Christian Ramirez and Co-­‐Chair, Vicki Gaubeca, as well as Brittney Nystrom (National Immigration Forum), Ruth Lopez-­‐McCarthy (Northern Border Coalition), Ana Perez (Presente.org) and others. When: Wednesday, July 25th at 11 am (EST). Delegates will be available for interviews Tuesday, July 24th -­‐ Thursday, July 26th, 2012. See itinerary for more details. Where: Washington D.C. Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) Building, 245 Second Street NE, near Senate Hart Building on Capitol Hill. Context: On Friday, July 20, PBS' Need to Know aired a second investigation of U.S. border agents, exposing instances of sexual assault, physical abuse, and even torture. These allegations were confirmed by former Border Patrol agent Ephraim Cruz, the International Red Cross, humanitarian groups including No More Deaths, and deported migrants, all of whom are featured in the latest show. Watch Need to Know: Crossing the Line Part 2. Revelations of these abuses come on the heels of damning video showing border agents torturing and killing Anastasio Hernandez Rojas. A delegation of human rights activists from the Southern Border Communities Coalition (SBCC), former Border Patrol agent Ephraim Cruz and others have gone to Washington D.C. this week to push for the White House to control the Border Patrol. Members of the delegation are available for interviews upon request. Please contact Ricardo Favela, (760) 468-­‐4519, [email protected] to arrange interviews and for updates. ###
PO Box 12266 | San Diego, CA 92112 US Friday, Jul 20, 2012 11:45 AM UTC Cruelty on the border A hidden camera shows Border Patrol agents destroying water jugs left for migrants, and the abuse just gets worse By John Carlos Frey A hidden camera set up by the group No More Deaths shows Border Patrol agents destroying water left in the desert for migrants to drink. The video will be broadcast tonight on the PBS show "Need to Know." The bodies have been turning up for years, thousands of them, scattered across the borderlands in the American Southwest. Ever-­‐stricter border enforcement has encouraged migrants to avoid cities like San Diego and El Paso and take their chances at remote desert crossings instead. As they trek across the vast, unfamiliar and scorching terrain, many get disoriented and run out of water, with devastating consequences. So far this year, 94 bodies have been recovered in Arizona alone. Since 2004, a faith-­‐based coalition called No More Deaths has been leaving gallon jugs of water near common migration routes in a desperate bid to save lives. But in May of this year, just as temperatures in the harsh Sonoran Desert climbed above 100 degrees, the group’s volunteers began to notice that their water bottles were being slashed, destroyed or emptied. With violence from ranchers and vigilantes a constant threat, No More Deaths installed hidden cameras. They were surprised at what they found: Border Patrol agents were purposely, even gleefully, destroying the life-­‐saving jugs of water. Visible on the tape, which will be broadcast for the first time tonight on the PBS show “Need to Know,” are three Border Patrol agents, two men and a woman, walking along a migrant trail and approaching half a dozen one-­‐gallon jugs of water. The female agent stops in front of the containers and begins to kick them, with force, down a ravine. The bottles crash against rocks, bursting open. She’s smiling. One of the agents watching her smiles as well, seeming to take real pleasure in the spectacle. He says something under his breath, and the word “tonk” is clearly audible. “Tonk,” it turns out, is a bit of derogatory slang used by some Border Patrol agents to refer to undocumented immigrants. One agent told me it’s derived from the sound a flashlight makes when you hit someone over the head — tonk. After destroying the entire water supply, the three agents continue along the path. (In response to specific questions about these events, Border Patrol officials replied only with a general statement emphasizing that misconduct would not be tolerated and that agents were trained to treat migrants with dignity and respect.) The event was not an anomaly. A volunteer with No More Deaths had complained several months earlier to Lisa Reed, community liaison for the Tucson Sector Border Patrol, that water was being destroyed by agents. Reed responded then with an email saying, “I am preparing a memo from the Chief to all the agents directing them to leave water alone.” The agents on the tape apparently either never got the memo — or simply ignored it. This attitude extends into the Border Patrol’s holding facilities. I met Demetrio, a migrant in his early 20s from Veracruz, Mexico, after he was apprehended by the Border Patrol. At the time of his capture, he’d been lost in the Arizona desert without food or water for three days. When he arrived at the Border Patrol custody facility outside Tucson, he told agents he felt sick and was running a fever. “I asked to see a doctor … and they said no,” Demetrio said. “One of them said, ‘Put him in there and let him die.’” They shoved him into an overcrowded cell. He was vomiting blood and felt so faint he could barely stand. Yet, according to Demetrio, he was not given any food or water for at least six to seven hours. Border Patrol protocol requires agents to provide detainees with food, drinking water and emergency medical services, to hold them under humane conditions, and to refrain from making degrading remarks, but this is rarely honored in practice, say human rights advocates. Over the past 15 years, reports documenting human rights abuses at the hands of Border Patrol agents have been published by Amnesty International, the ACLU, No More Deaths, even the United Nations. Contrary to their own protocols, Border Patrol agents have been accused of systematically denying food and water to migrants in custody, forcing them into overcrowded cells, stealing their money, confiscating medications, and denying them medical treatment. Migrants have described agents hurling verbal abuse, racial slurs and curses, and inflicting sexual assault, physical violence, even death. At least 14 migrants and border residents have died at the hands of Border Patrol agents over the past two years. These practices appear to be systemic, amounting to what No More Deaths calls “a culture of cruelty.” The Department of Homeland Security claims that only three complaints were lodged against Border Patrol detention conditions for the entirety of 2010 (the most current data), a year when agents apprehended more than 463,000 individuals. Only 10 complaints were filed for “abuse of authority” that year and 13 for “discrimination.” A request to see a log of those complaints, as well as a record of any disciplinary actions taken by the Border Patrol, was denied; a Freedom of Information Act request filed last month has yet to elicit a response. So I took a trip to Nogales, Mexico, to visit the Kino Border Initiative, a faith-­‐based migrant-­‐care facility. Sean Carroll, a Jesuit priest, heads the organization and oversees a shelter, a medical clinic and a soup kitchen that feeds up to 100 people each day. “Abuses are happening,” Carroll says. “It’s not every agent. But institutionally, there are problems. Migrants are being abused verbally, physically, sexually. And it violates their human dignity.” In Nogales, we polled a group of about 75 migrants, almost all recent deportees, who had gathered for the 9 a.m. meal. I asked whether any of them had been denied food or water or had been forced into overcrowded cells. Were they physically or verbally abused? Had any of them been denied medical care? In each case, more than 50 people raised their hands. In a single morning, in one town along the border, there seemed to be more instances of abuse than in an entire year of complaints compiled by Homeland Security. Doctors of the World and the Red Cross each maintain facilities at strategic locations along the Mexican side of the border to provide medical assistance to migrants. Local staffers from both organizations confirm that migrants are routinely denied medical attention while in the custody of the Border Patrol. They say migrants also have their prescription medication confiscated without any medical evaluation. According to Norma Quijada Ibarra, a registered nurse with the Kino Border Initiative, “Every day we have someone that has been abused by the Border Patrol. I just saw a patient with a fracture detained for a few days. They didn’t give him any food, or medicine for the pain.” In two days in Nogales, I heard firsthand accounts of young women being slapped on the rear as they were being searched. Other women said they were kicked and called whores or told they smelled worse than dogs. I listened to accounts of men being crammed into cells so overcrowded no one could sit or lie down. The only way to fit in the cell was to stand, shoulder to shoulder — for three days straight. If the migrants complained of overcrowding, several of the men told me, the Border Patrol would add more people to the cell. If a migrant complained the cell was too cold, agents would crank up the AC; if detainees complained it was too hot, agents would turn up the heat. I heard numerous accounts of migrants having their personal belongings confiscated and never returned. Migrants told of being deported to Mexico without their cellphones or backpacks — without even their belts and shoelaces. I spoke to three men who told me they each had over $100 in cash and Mexican identification documents among their confiscated personal belongings. Their ID cards were destroyed and their money was never returned. When the men asked for their money back, the agents said, “It’s ours now.” All of these accounts, if true, would constitute serious violations of Border Patrol protocol and of international human rights standards. Demetrio recounted one devastating incident he witnessed while he was in custody, the details of which were corroborated by another detainee. He saw a young migrant pulled from the cell where they were being held for failing to understand an order shouted at him in English. He was then forced to kneel on bottle caps with his arms extended. “They forced him to stay like that for more than three hours,” Demetrio said. If he lowered his arms from fatigue, agents shouted at him and prodded him to keep them up. Both witnesses say that agents covered surveillance cameras with cracker boxes during the incident — and uncovered them again once they returned the young man to his cell. One former Border Patrol agent, Ephraim Cruz, also witnessed forms of abuse that he saw as tantamount to torture. Cruz describes agents, at the direction of their commanding officers, forcing detainees to remain in half-­‐squat or “stress positions” until they could no longer stand. He says agents were trying to teach the migrants, “I’m the authority. Get in line. When I say move, you move.” In his nine years working the border near Tucson, Ariz., and earning the rank of senior agent, Cruz says he frequently saw agents physically abusing detainees and denying food and water to those who were in obvious need. He also saw “individuals being crammed into cells twice beyond the posted capacity. Standing room only. I mean, you couldn’t even lie down on the floor.” This was done, he says, even when empty cells were available nearby. In 2003, he began warning his supervisors of this pattern of abuse. When his spoken complaints didn’t elicit a response, he began to write letters. “I started at the unit level,” Cruz says. “I went to the sector chief, office of inspector general — via phone calls and faxes of those memorandums. Went on to the commissioner of the Customs and Border Protection, who’s over the U.S. Border Patrol Agency. And then felt the need to move on to Congress.” Cruz left the force in 2007 without ever hearing a response. We contacted Richard A. Barlow, sector chief for the Tucson Border Patrol, for a response to allegations of agent misconduct. He declined to be interviewed, instead issuing this response: “Border Patrol agents are required to treat all those they encounter with respect and dignity. This requirement is consistently addressed in training and consistently reinforced throughout an agent’s career. On a daily basis, agents make every effort to ensure that people in our custody are given food, water, and medical attention as needed. Mistreatment or agent misconduct will not be tolerated in any way. Any agent within our ranks who does not adhere to the highest standards of conduct will be identified and appropriate disciplinary action will be taken.” Customs and Border Patrol in Washington responded in even more general terms: “CBP stresses honor and integrity in every aspect of our mission,” an agency spokesperson said by email. “We do not tolerate abuse within our ranks, and … we are fully committed to protecting the health, safety and human rights of all individuals with whom we interact.” The right policies are evidently in place — if they were only enforced. We traveled to a rural mountain village high in the Sierra Madre in Sonora, Mexico, to track down one of the rare deportees who tried to file a formal complaint against the Border Patrol, which she did under the name Jane Doe. Doe, 27, was caught by the Border Patrol in 2009 when she was on a passenger bus that was stopped at a checkpoint near Las Cruces, N.M. Doe could produce only false residency documents and was escorted off the bus to a holding cell. That’s where Doe says she was sexually assaulted. As Doe recalls, she was in the cell by herself when a Border Patrol agent entered and said he would have to search her. “This is when he put his hands under my blouse,” she says, her voice trembling. As she describes it, the agent grabbed her from behind, pushed her up against a wall, and aggressively groped her chest. “He had me — my back was facing him, and he…” She begins to weep. “So he was hugging me, and he had his hands under my blouse.” As he grabbed her violently from head to toe, he whispered words in English she couldn’t understand except one word, “Baby,” which he said over and over. She thought she was about to get raped. Photos taken shortly after the attack show long, deep scratches and red abrasions across her chest. After the incident, Doe was deported to Juarez. But the sexual assault haunted her. She fell into a deep depression and sought counseling. Her therapist urged her to file a complaint against the agent, to help her recovery, and she eventually returned to a Border Patrol facility in El Paso, Texas, to look at a photo lineup and file the necessary paperwork. According to Tania Chozet, her ACLU attorney at the time, Doe was taken into a private room by two female Border Patrol agents wearing reflective sunglasses who harshly interrogated about the reason for her visit. They asked her the same questions again and again, warned her not to lie, patted her down, and searched her clothing and shoes. “When Ms. Doe finally emerged,” Chozet says, “tears were streaming down her face.” By then, Jane Doe was too upset to proceed. She briefly looked at the photo lineup but couldn’t even focus on the faces. She failed to recognize her assailant and decided not to proceed with charges. “I can’t think of any other reason why they would have been so menacing, if they weren’t trying to intimidate her,” Chozet says. “My guess is that they were hoping that she would feel threatened enough to drop her complaint.” Edward Rheinheimer is an Arizona Republican, an elected attorney in one of the most conservative counties in the United States. When, in 2007, he asked the federal government for help prosecuting an agent for killing a migrant, he learned just how difficult it can be to achieve accountability when it comes to Border Patrol abuse. Rheinheimer strongly suspected that the agent in question was lying to investigators, as his testimony openly contradicted the forensic evidence. “I called the U.S. attorney in Tucson and asked for assistance in helping us prosecute the case,” says Rheinheimer. The U.S. attorney got back to him about a week later, Rheinheimer recalls: “These were his exact words: ‘Are you out of your mind?’” Months earlier, the Department of Justice had successfully prosecuted two Border Patrol agents, Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean, for shooting a marijuana smuggler in the back. But the political backlash was significant, souring relations between the Department of Justice and the Border Patrol. “At no time did anyone from the U.S. attorney’s office ever indicate to me that the reason they didn’t get involved was because they didn’t think this was an appropriate prosecution,” Rheinheimer says. DOJ, he was told, simply could not afford to prosecute another Border Patrol killing. But the DOJ did order a U.S. attorney to prosecute another Border Patrol agent in 2005 — Ephraim Cruz. “I found myself on the receiving end of felony charges being brought against me,” says Cruz, the Border Patrol whistle-­‐blower, “accused of smuggling an illegal into the country.” Just months after he filed the complaints regarding detainee abuse by fellow agents, Cruz gave the girlfriend of a fellow agent a ride across the border. “I was driving my vehicle. I had another agent in the car with me,” he recalls. “We saw her, we recognized her, offered her a ride. Came through the port of entry. Legally inspected, legally admitted.” When it was later discovered that the woman was an undocumented immigrant, Cruz was suspended without pay and prosecuted. He was ultimately exonerated, and during the course of his trial agents testified under oath that he had been targeted for retribution. Cruz went two years without pay. He was labeled a traitor, asked repeatedly, “What side are you on?” and told he would never get his job back. He finally resigned in 2007, never having been questioned by Border Patrol authorities about the abuses he reported. Just last week, news broke that a federal grand jury had been convened in the case of Anastasio Hernandez Rojas, who was killed by Border Patrol agents in 2010. The agents involved in that killing, too, enjoyed impunity until surreptitious video of the event was broadcast on PBS’s “Need to Know” in April, showing that Hernandez had been beaten and shot with a stun gun while handcuffed and prone on the ground. The Border Patrol is the largest police force in the United States. But it lacks oversight, transparency and accountability. John Carlos Frey reports on immigration for The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute and broke the Anastasio Hernandez story. http://www.salon.com/2012/07/20/cruelty_on_the_border/ http://roybal-allard.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=304832
Roybal-Allard Contact: Elizabeth Murphy (202) 225-1766
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS REACT TO PBS STORY ON BORDER ABUSES
Washington, D.C., Jul 26 In response to a PBS investigation that documented allegations of widespread abuse by Customs and
Border Protection (CBP) personnel, Members of Congress expressed grave concerns about the agency’s
commitment to preventing the mistreatment of detained immigrants. The documentary, which mirrors the
findings of multiple independent inquiries by non-governmental organizations, found evidence of physical
abuse, deprivation of food and water, sexual assault and even torture by members of the nation’s largest
law enforcement agency.
“The PBS report paints an appalling picture of cruelty and corruption,” said Congresswoman Lucille
Roybal-Allard (D-CA). “While the evidence mounts that CBP personnel are responsible for a deeply
troubling pattern of abuses, the agency’s leadership has yet to take any meaningful action to improve the
oversight of its officers and agents in the field. The time has come for CBP to finally take these egregious
allegations seriously.”
“The latest PBS reporting shows that the problems with violence at the CBP are widespread and systemic,”
said Congressman José E. Serrano (D-NY). “The need for a top-to-bottom review of CBP practices and
for increased training of their officers couldn’t be more clear. We must ensure the safety and well-being of
immigrants and citizens near the border and in custody. Most of those who are detained have done little
more than cross a border—they shouldn’t be treated like violent criminals or worse.”
"In light of the findings in PBS's report, it is imperative that there is a proper investigation to get at the root
of these allegations,” said Congressman Charles A. Gonzalez (D-TX), Chairman of the Congressional
Hispanic Caucus. Detainees under our government’s custody require an environment free of abuse,
corruption and violence. Anything less than that, is a violation of our fundamental values as a nation."
“Decades of partisanship, gridlock and acrimony have prevented the United States from addressing border,
immigration, and security issues in a sensible way,” said Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL), the
Chair of the Immigration Task Force of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. “The result of our tough ‘law
and order’ approach to border security is clearly less law and less order, with an unmanageable agency,
renegade agents, unconscionable abuse, and more acrimony. We must do better in a 21st century world
where contraband and threats are on the move at the same time that goods, families, tourists, and workers
are also on the move and are driving our economy and prosperity.”
“Congress should put politics aside and work together now to reform our broken immigration system,” said
Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO). “One of the first steps is ensuring that federal agencies responsibly
enforce the law. The allegations of abuse and corruption cast serious doubt on CBP’s ability to do so.
Congress should investigate these allegations and the agencies involved should undertake a wholesale
rethinking of how they conduct their business.”
“The credible, ongoing allegations of abuse and corruption by certain Customs and Border Patrol agents
raised by PBS and others demand immediate attention,” said Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ).
“Agency leaders should start an immediate zero-tolerance policy and address credible reports of
wrongdoing as quickly as possible. Many men and women who protect our nation’s borders truly define
courage and honor. Those who violate the trust given to them by the American people should be held
accountable for their actions not only to give their victims justice and closure, but to preserve the respect
their agencies and their more honorable colleagues have earned.”
Statistics obtained by Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard from the Department of Homeland Security Office of the
Inspector General (DHS OIG) show that at least 26 CBP employees have been arrested and 14 convicted of
crimes in the past year alone.
In May, 16 members of Congress called for justice in the tragic beating death of an undocumented
immigrant named Anastacio Hernandez-Rojas in CBP custody and reiterated the need for tougher oversight
of Border Patrol personnel. A grand jury has subsequently been convened to investigate the HernandezRojas case.
###
U.S. reviewing guidelines for use of force by border agencies The Department of Homeland Security's scrutiny is in response to a letter from 16 members of Congress expressing concern about a Mexican man dying after being Tasered. October 17, 2012 | By Richard Marosi, Los Angeles Times A Border Patrol vehicle keeps watch beside the border fence that separates the United States from Mexico. (Mark Ralston / AFP/Getty) The Department of Homeland Security is reviewing guidelines for use of force by border agencies amid a sharp increase in agent-­‐involved killings along the U.S.-­‐Mexico border. The scrutiny of U.S. Customs and Border Protection enforcement practices comes in response to a request by 16 members of Congress who expressed concern over the death of a Mexican man who suffered a fatal heart attack after being Tasered by a customs officer in 2010. The review by Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General will determine whether the incident at the San Ysidro port of entry in San Diego reflected systemic brutality or use of excessive force, and whether the rapid rise in staffing in recent years has affected training. Since 2010, at least 16 civilians have been killed by agents, many during rock-­‐throwing confrontations involving suspected smugglers. Critics have grown increasingly vocal about rocks being met by bullets, which they consider disproportionate force. Under the agency's guidelines, agents are permitted to use lethal force in such situations because rocks and other projectiles have caused serious injuries. Most agents involved in fatal incidents in recent years have been cleared of wrongdoing. "CBP law enforcement personnel are trained to use deadly force in circumstances that pose a threat to their lives, the lives of their fellow law enforcement partners and innocent third parties," U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a recent statement. Human rights advocates and civil rights groups hailed the inspector general's move as a way to counter what they call a growing culture of impunity. It is believed to be the first time that the agency has come under such scrutiny in recent years. The inquiry was not announced publicly, but was included in the inspector general's annual performance plan, which was released Oct. 4. "Knowingly hiring bad apples, having a policy of shooting first and asking questions later, being accountable to no one, all point to an agency that is out of control," said Christian Ramirez, human rights director at Southern Border Communities Coalition, an immigrant advocacy group. Since September, three people have been killed in confrontations involving Border Patrol officers, including a mother of five from the San Diego suburb of Chula Vista and a 16-­‐year-­‐old suspected rock thrower from Nogales. During the boy's funeral this week, mourners carried his coffin along the border fence and shouted epithets at border officials who bolstered security along the fence dividing Arizona from Sonora. Critics question the self-­‐defense claims by agents. Some of the suspects have been shot in the back, or from such long distances that their rock throwing wouldn't have posed a serious threat, they say. Mexican government officials said one man shot on the banks of the Rio Grande in Nuevo Laredo was picnicking with his family. The members of Congress wrote a letter in May to the inspector general after a video surfaced showing a customs officer in San Diego using a Taser on a man, Anastasio Hernandez Rojas, who later died of a heart attack. U.S. officials said the man, who had methamphetamine in his system, was resisting his deportation to Tijuana. Advocates say he was handcuffed and pleading for his life when the agent used the weapon, which is supposed to deliver a non-­‐lethal jolt of electricity. In the letter, the lawmakers urged the inspector general to determine whether the Hernandez incident is "emblematic of a broader cultural problem within CBP." They also questioned whether other fatal confrontations have been fully investigated. "There are serious problems raised by this series of deaths tied to the department, and the fact that there did not appear to be an effort by the department to fully investigate the incidents," the lawmakers wrote. Among the letter's signees were Lucille Roybal-­‐Allard (D-­‐East Los Angeles), Bob Filner (D-­‐Chula Vista), Joe Baca (D-­‐Rialto) and Xavier Becerra (D-­‐Los Angeles). A congressional staffer said that the investigation began a month or two ago and that the report is not expected until sometime next year. [email protected] Times staff writer Brian Bennett, of the Tribune Washington Bureau, contributed to this report. http://articles.latimes.com/2012/oct/17/local/la-­‐me-­‐border-­‐patrol-­‐20121018
U.S. undertakes review of border officers’ use of force The initiative comes amid a sharp increase in fatal confrontations along the Southwest border. Mexican government officials will get briefings on closed investigations involving force. December 07, 2012|By Richard Marosi and Brian Bennett, Los Angeles Times A fence separates San Luis, Ariz., and the Mexican state of Sonora, right. (Don Barletti, Los Angeles Times) U.S. Customs and Border Protection has launched what it calls a comprehensive review of its officers' use of force amid a sharp increase in fatal confrontations along the Southwest border. The initiative, which appears to be the most far-­‐reaching of its kind in recent years, calls for an assessment of current tactics and the participation of an independent outside research center. Mexican government officials, who have condemned the shootings, will also be provided briefings on closed investigations involving force, according to a memorandum prepared for Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and obtained by the Los Angeles Times. The memorandum, dated Oct., 24, 2012, is from David V. Aguilar, the agency's deputy commissioner. Since 2010, 16 people have been killed in fatal confrontations with Border Patrol agents and customs officers, prompting unprecedented levels of scrutiny and criticism from some U.S. Congress members and border activists. Agency guidelines permit agents to fire weapons against people suspected of throwing rocks, a practice that critics consider excessive. Recent incidents that stirred protests include the shooting in October of a 16-­‐year-­‐old suspected rock thrower in Nogales, Mexico, and the September shooting of a man on the banks of the Rio Grande in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. Mexican authorities say the man was picnicking with his family. In San Diego, protests erupted over the 2010 death of a man who suffered a fatal heart attack after being Tasered in a scuffle. About half of the fatal incidents in recent years involved rock throwers. In most cases the agents involved were cleared of wrongdoing. The Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General is also conducting a review of the incidents. U.S. authorities will ramp up efforts to improve coordination with Mexican authorities in high-­‐risk areas, according to the memorandum. They are also pressing Mexico to establish a specially trained border unit. Among the most significant elements in the review, experts and officials said, is the involvement of an unspecified third party, described as a federally funded research and development center. "Any time you can get an independent party to do a review, that is really the best way to go," said Alonzo Pena, a former Department of Homeland Security attache at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City. "There will never be confidence in a review being done by the agency itself," he said. Vicki B. Gaubeca, the director of the regional center for border rights for the ACLU of New Mexico, said she welcomed "anything they can do to prevent unnecessary deaths, so agents resort to the lethal use of force only as a last resort." Among rank-­‐and-­‐file agents, the new measures were greeted with a mix of resentment and cautious optimism. In recent weeks, supervisors have distributed the use of force guidelines to agents to refresh their knowledge of the policy. Chief patrol agents from across the Southwest were summoned to Washington, D.C., in October to discuss the policy. Some agents questioned the role of the Mexican government, saying their actions contributed to the violence. "They refuse to police their northern border and they allow free rein by criminal organizations," said Shawn Moran, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, the union representing Border Patrol agents. "But when one of their citizens is killed after assaulting a Border Patrol agent, they raise hell." Customs and Border Protection officials said the review should be completed by the end of January. [email protected] [email protected]
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-­‐me-­‐border-­‐force-­‐20121208,0,2852489.story