Oscar
Charleston, SC
Male, 31
Spent a bit over four years (2006-2010) serving as a Border Patrol Agent in Tucson Sector, AZ: the busiest sector in the country. Worked numerous positions, and spent the last year and a half operating/instructing ground radar installations. Duties included: field patrols, transport, processing, control room duties, transportation check, checkpoint operations, static watch duties, etc.
The answer to this question is two-fold: theory and reality. The theory is that illegal immigrants will be intercepted/apprehended within 25-50 miles of the international border. If they make it into the country, we "hope" that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.) will manage to apprehend some. Most police departments/sheriff's offices in the U.S. will attempt to contact their local I.C.E/USBP office if they have an aggravated felon who is an illegal, etc. For the most part, once an illegal enters the country and is not apprehended, his chance of deportation drops immensely. Most police departments/sheriff's offices do not have the money/manpower/capability to actively transfer/hold illegals etc. When illegal immigrants are caught by the Border Patrol they are assembled at a processing station, finger-printed, recorded and their information is entered into an immigration database. If they have a previous criminal history, they are held for proper deportation/prosecution. About 80% of illegal immigrants have no criminal history within the United States. These individuals are processed and returned to Mexico (or their country of origin) within 24 hours. That is our requirement. It is not uncommon in some sectors that an illegal can be apprehended, processed and returned to Mexico through a designated Port of Entry (P.O.E.) within 12 hours or less. It is important to note that an immigration removal for a normal illegal immigrant is referred to as a Voluntary Return - or a VR. This means, that the illegal immigrant is not entered into the U.S.'s FBI database as a criminal (even though they have broken a federal law). This would overload the entire FBI system. These illegal immigrants are only entered into our immigration database so we can monitor the number of times they have been apprehended, and keep tabs on them. Illegal immigrants from other countries are referred to as O.T.M's (Other Than Mexican) and are processed differently. They will be processed and held until a plane is available to take them to their country of origin. I've caught Greeks, Chinese, Pakistanis, Indians, Guatemalans, Ecuadorians, El Salvadorians etc. The process for O.T.M's can take several weeks - as we often wait for a plane-load of illegal immigrants to be assembled. Obviously we can not afford to be flying planes into other countries with only a handful of passengers. Illegal immigrants from distant countries I believe are transferred to I.C.E. who manage long-distance removals.
You've hit the nail on the head. There is little to no real consequence to entering the country illegally. In fact, quite the opposite. Our country bends over and actively pursues business/hiring/employment etc. of illegal immigrants. I've interviewed thousands of illegal immigrants and they readily admit they come here because it's easy and welcoming.
The USBP does have the discretion to deport anyone that enters the country illegally. While this enters you into the FBI system as an actual criminal (with an actual criminal record to go along with it) we simply do not have the time/manpower to do this. It takes 12-15 forms, and 2-4 hours of paperwork per person for a proper deportation. To put things in perspective my station covered only 10 miles of international border. We used to catch upwards of 700 people per day. You can see the impossible scale of the problem.
Even someone who is deported can still enter into the U.S. again within a few hours. It was very common to apprehend people with paperwork and baggage tags from the previous day. The common practice was the simply cross as many times as possible, until you got through.
Long story short, there are no real genuine consequences.
There is one, and only one real solution - and once again, something we'll never do. America needs to stop supporting illegal immigrants. End of story.
No credit cards. No houses. No apartments. No jobs. No social programs. No medical care. No driver's licenses. Close/arrest any shop and any employer who employs/houses/supports illegal immigrants. It would require the entire country to turn it's back on illegal immigrants.
Unfortunately the American way is cheaper, easier...regardless of the future cost or the country's well-being.
Remove the incentive to come to the U.S., and you solve the illegal immigration problem. Make the only option: legally becoming a citizen the correct way. Couple this with immigration reform which makes becoming a citizen more streamlined, easy, and accessible and you have a chance.
Think about the average American. They'd rather save 20% on their vegetables than pay an American a decent wage to work on a farm. We've tainted the "working man's" jobs here in the U.S. Taken jobs which were once a respectable way to earn a living, and made them into jobs that only illegal immigrants should or would do. All in the aim of saving a buck.
This has changed several times since I was in the Patrol. When I applied, it took approximately 6 months from application to arriving at the USBP Academy at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Artesia, NM. During those six months you do a physical, an initial test, a foreign-language suitability test, an oral interview, background investigation, additional paperwork etc.
Once at the FLETC, our academy was 20 weeks (5 months) long. During this time you had 3-4 hours of classes per day, 2+ hours of physical instruction, practical exercises, etc. The Patrol is very paramilitary, so you march around as a class etc. You take a huge course load ranging from immigration law to terrorist detection etc. Most of your classes are based on immigration and naturlization law. Your PT instructors will run you through all of your physical-based training, such as handcuffing techniques, stacking drills, even a week spent in the pool (in case you end up along the Rio Grande or somewhere with water).
It's a very lengthy academy. It's not overly difficult though you have numerous pass/fail instances while there. You train for about 14 weeks on firearms handling manipulations, emergency and non-emergency vehicle operations, including high speed pursuits, felony stops, and off-road vehicle handling. You'll learn radio operation and proper communication techniques, deportation paperwork handling and processing etc.
It's a rather extensive academy. You also spend three hours a day learning Spanish. Each BP class (appproximately 50 trainees) is divided by level of Spanish. The fluent native speakers have it very easy, whereas people who don't have to work rather hard to catch on.
Once you pass the academy and return to your assigned station you enter an additional 7+ months of trainee status. You'll spend one day a week doing more training, and will be assigned to your stations Field Training Unit (FTU). You'll be quizzed and tested on law, proper field procedures, Spanish etc. When I was in, we had a 7 and a 10 month exam. Each of these tested law and Spanish. These were pass/fail and were really stressful.
After all of this, you'll work as a normal field agent...albeit on probation (I believe a two year probationary status is normal).
Since I was in the Patrol much of this has changed. They shortened the academy and cut several classes. I'm not entirely sure what the system is right now.
Regarding prior law enforcement training: this is now taken into account when you apply to become a Border Patrol Agent. While you do not skip the academy, you can take a test or interview I believe to start as a GS9 (higher pay grade). This means depending on your experience and resume you can join the Patrol as a GS5, GS7, or GS9 (different pay scales).
Special Education Teacher
Does it bother you when people use the R-word?Claims Adjuster
Do you ever feel bad for the people whose claims you deny?Chick-fil-A General Manager
How often do you have to fire someone, and does it ever get ugly?
They do very little. In fact, sadly almost every form of Mexican authority is plagued with a large amount of corruption. It was more common for Mexican police to extort bribes out of Mexicans...and then send them on their way. They would also abuse/harass O.T.M's very often. There is no real Mexican border patrol on the U.S. border, except around larger cities/P.O.E.'s.
Mexican police were not trustworthy. Mexican military were equally questionable (they often patrol the border, battling the cartels). Mexican customs is a joke. In addition to this, there are the cartels (who effectively run/coordinate everything), and then "bandidos" or bandits - groups of thugs who'd sneak into the U.S. but only to prey on groups of illegal immigrants heading North. They would jump them in the mountains or distant areas, stealing their money and supplies etc.
Mexican police and military units frequently cross the U.S. border into our country. In one instance they actually seized one of my station's agents along the border road. They claimed he was a fake agent, preparing to assist in a smuggling operation. This ended up in a tense standoff between their police/military and our agents (including our SRT/BORTAC units).
We would occasionally contact the Mexican police when we spotted something fishy on their side of the line. We would occasionally see dead bodies, or in one instance an SUV (which turned out to be loaded with chopped up bodies). They would begrudgingly respond and investigate.
We would also contact them if we had criminals heading south (we often had U.S. citizens committing heinous crimes and trying to flee South to Mexico, murderers and kidnappers etc.). Occasionally they would respond and try to assist finding them. In general though, very little cooperation between our two countries.
It's not "creeping", it's here. The drug cartels are extremely large, powerful organizations and their reach expands throughout all of the U.S. and Canada, albeit not nearly as distinctly as in Mexico.
If they don't run it, they have some say in it - or want to have some say in it. Keep in mind these are organizations who are going toe-to-toe with the Mexican federal police and military...and winning.
The death toll along the Mexican border (thankfully, mostly on the South side) is something beyond 60,000 people in five years. That's more civilians/cartel/police dead than soldiers we lost in Vietnam. The violence down there is shockingly bad. Luckily the cartels are just smart enough to go very subdued in the U.S.
In border areas you will see a lot of cartel vs. cartel violence. In the desert, in run-down towns, and even places like Phoenix and Tucson. It's direct and violent, but rarely covered by news, and even more rarely attributed to cartels. There have been instances where cartel hitmen have dressed up as fake Phoenix and Tucson PD SWAT teams to raid each other's stash houses.
Cartels battle each other in the deserts of Southern Arizona pretty often. We'd happen upon shooting sites fairly often. There are many places in Texas where landowners have abandoned their own land because cartel operations and traffic are too heavy. In my station's AOR we had areas where you simply did not go unless you had backup (preferably in force).
So the cartel presence is definitely within the U.S. As much as they can they're trying to keep mass violence to a minimum because they know it will draw too much attention. They know if they start dumping truck-loads of dismembered bodies on the highways here it might actually make the news and people would start paying attention.
As far as murders and violence deeper within the U.S. (and yes, into Canada) - if it's drug related it could very well be cartel related. There are many gangs and small criminal enterprises who work heavily with the cartels or on their behalf etc.
We're a long way from having a situation as bad as Mexico, though it does cross the border sometimes if you have a small town really close to Mexico. I sat in a truck one night with a buddy of mine who's Mexican girlfriend was on the phone with him for two hours while a huge gun battle was raging around her house. On speaker phone we could hear the constant automatic weapons fire, and boom of grenades (possibly RPG's). She only lived about 20 miles into Mexico. Luckily we're not "there" yet. I hope we never are.
The Fast and Furious scheme is one of the absolute worst violations of public power I've seen. If this were a different legislation, heads would roll.
While we didn't have any direct experience with it (from an operation standpoint) we suffered the penalties for their idiocy. No knowledgable law enforcement official in the country would ever support a program which allows strawman purchases of firearms. Those firearms have ended up in several dozen crime scenes in the U.S., including the death of BPA Brian Terry.
Unfortunately there is a huge political component to this, which is aimed squarely at criminalizing U.S. gun owners - blaming them for guns ending up in Mexico, etc. That's the most infuriating part. This was an example of some politicians and some stupid agency officials pushing their own agendas...with American citizens (and other agents) paying the price for it. An absolute shame.
Our area of responsibility (AOR) was extremely busy because of the lack of cities on the border. The open desert and no wall made it very appetizing to the cartels. The tunnels you hear about tend to be in more built-up areas, namely cities which span the border (Nogales, AZ etc.).
Tucson Sector is responsible for something like 70-80% of all of the intercepted drugs coming into the country. Most common: vehicles and backpackers ("mules"). It was very common to find groups of 10-20 backpackers, each carrying between 40-70 lbs. of marijuana on their back. Trucks would routinely be loaded with 1500-2500 lbs., depending on size.
When possible, you'd also see convoys of cartel trucks, 2-3 at a time (yep, up to 5-7,000 lbs of marijuana in a single lump). Marijuana is the bread-winner of the cartels. The cocaine/meth etc. is much more discreetly smuggled/handled.
In some places you'll intercept entire big-rig trucks with massive 10,000+ lb. loads. During the "busy season" of the drug smuggling, we'd catch around 25-35,000 lbs. a month, all catches combined.
The most ingenious method is probably the single biggest threat: ultralights. This is the most concerning development in cartel operations. They have a rather large armada of ultralight aircraft, capable of carrying 200-600 lbs. of cargo across the border, quietly in the air. Running radar trucks I would occasionally get calls from our massive air traffic radars in California - I'd scan up into the sky with my FLIR camera and I could see the small aircraft coming across the border.
We had no real way of tracking/engaging these ultralights. Occasionally we'd have a Blackhawk helicopter who could catch them. One National Guard F-16 accidentally forced one to crash when checking it out. These little tiny ultralight aircraft would fly into the U.S. as far as Phoenix. One actually flew through the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport's airspace --- causing them to place all commercial aircraft in a holding pattern.
The concern here is of course not marijuana (I support the legalization of that anyway - it's a farce); but the other potential cargo. An ultralight could carry a couple of people (terrorists or other undesirables), or even a small weapon (a dirty bomb, chemical weapon etc.). The ultralights were almost never properly intercepted or caught. There are far too many intel reports about Al Qaeda and other organizations in Mexico and South America seeking to use the cartel's infiltration expertise. This means that people or weapons could come in here very quickly, simply, and without detection.
So, personal opinion: ultralight aircraft are a serious problem. Now, from a defensive perspective we could simply shoot them down - unannounced foreign aircraft crossing into U.S. airspace, etc. but the kinder/gentler modern U.S.A. would likely not abide such actions and would cry foul.
If you want info on drug tunnels, look into Nogales, AZ. This place was so bad a few years before I joined the Patrol that we used to call it "Nogadishu", an homage to Mogadishu. There was a time when cross-border shootings etc. were an every day occurence. It was a bad place.
No. I only ever felt bad for the kids and children (especially those who died in the desert) because they didn't have a choice in the matter. Considering that 70% of the USBP was hispanic, "we" didn't have much sympathy for those coming across. Every illegal immigrant is a slap in the face to the 10's of thousands of people who bust their butts to enter the country legally through the correct channels. The USBP is pro-immigration...just legal immigration. We all agree there should be reforms to the current process, but taking the easy way out and breaking the law won't garner any sympathy from me.
Remember ultralights are little flimsy aircraft run by lawn-mower motors etc. I don't know how soon we'll be seeing unmanned drones from the cartels. Now, cheap little camera-helicopters you can fly from your iPhone? Maybe. Maybe even some of the smaller, cheaper propeller driven ones eventually (the kind you can deploy as a single person, and control with a little control box from a backpack). But genuine, long-distance, heavy duty drones with sophisticated cameras/weapons? I wouldn't worry about that anytime soon.
Most clever that I personally encountered was a Mexican man who made his gown Ghillie suit (a camouflage suit that military snipers make out of netting/branches/grass etc.). He had made it about seven miles into the country but surrended when a USBP horse patrol unit came so close they were about to step on him.
The dumbest was likely one of the many counterfeit vans which they tried to sneak across the border. Mexicans occasionally try to recreate USBP vehicles. They never do a very good job and you can pick them out almost immediately.
This particular van was painted up as a USBP van, had a cage inside etc. However, about 1/4 mile into the U.S. the driver decided to bail out and run back south. Because they'd taken so much time to replicate a USBP van, the inside of the van had a locked cage. Units following the van saw the drive flee - and he left 30 other Mexicans locked up in the van. Easiest apprehension those agents ever made.
Forging a U.S. Passport would be very difficult. Now, everything can be done at a certain price, so high-level criminals could likely swing a pretty convincing copy. However, with the advent of barcodes/scanning techniques this has now become incredibly difficult. Anyone can reproduce some watermarks, type, and photos...but to pass a scanning machine is extremely difficult.
I wish I had more opportunity to work a P.O.E. with Customs guys as this was something I had little experience in. More common were fake Mexican ID cards - carried by people from other countries, trying to pass as Mexicans. These were almost always cheap copies and easily detected/exposed.
Tattoos are not a concern, unless you have obscenities or graphic content displayed on your neck/face/hands etc. If you have "normal" tattoos which are reasonable it is not a problem.
While this question is purely political/agenda driven in nature, I'll provide a short response. There are numerous pieces of legislation which provide USBP and Customs officers various forms of authority within a certain radius of an international border (and by extension international airports which are technically also P.O.E's.). As the distance increases from the border we have different levels of authority. You can google and wikipedia the relevant laws and pieces of legislation which provide for this authority. A similar number of restrictions apply to USBP checkpoints.
USBP Agents are also often assigned additional Customs authority depending on their job location.
PS: If you happen to live near a USBP station they actually have all of this information available in handout pamphlets etc. We always had boxes of them at our vehicle checkpoint.
Depends on the weapon. Agents are issued a service handgun (currently an HK P2000 in .40 S&W). Shotguns and carbines (M4/M4A1's) are checked out during shift if you think you'll need one.
Special units may be issued "take home" carbines/shotguns and even secondary handguns (for clandestine/undercover tasks). So, carbines/shotguns are kept in the armory (our station did not have nearly enough for everyone to have an issued longarm.).
You keep your handgun at all times. It is your assigned firearm.
The U.S./Mexico international border is extremely porous. While on paper the entire border is monitored, the reality is that our capacity to deter/intercept all of the illegal traffic is mediocre at best. Judging by the traffic patterns I saw, I would estimate my station/sector's capability at perhaps 30% of the overall traffic is intercepted effectively.
From an official standpoint, obviously the Border Patrol does not endorse or condone "vigilante" style groups like the Minutemen. That being said, I don't mind them. We were required to report them and confront them if we found them operating in our AOR. This was rare though, as our sector was far too busy. We had a lot of people who would call in and help us (even had a lady who erected a watchtower in her backyard).
I never viewed the Minutemen as a "lunatic fringe" group. Most of the people are farmers/landowners or friends/relatives of them...people who are suffering at the hands of the border problem.
The stories of American citizens being forced to leave or sell their homes and land because of the flow of illegals/cartel members etc. is heartbreaking. So, officialy -no we don't support them, but on a personal level none of us really cared. We never had any citizens arrests etc.
We have a lot of the border under surveillance, but it's never enough. Also the desert is an extremely diverse environment. Dense brush, cliffs, outcroppings, washes (dry creekbeds), etc. make it very difficult to observe all of it.
Places with open expanses do rely on large networks of cameras. All along the border we also have sensors or various types (magnetic, seismic etc.) to detect groups and vehicles. However these don't always work, and are often set off by cattle or locals, or even BP Agents etc.
I worked for a bit over a year and a half in radar trucks which are fantastic. However these are expensive, and we never had enough of them. They were placed in high traffic areas. They were extremely effective - moreso than any other tactic we used.
Also, it's very common for BP Agents to detect, sight, or even chase a group and not catch it. So our detection numbers may be high, but actual apprehension numbers much lower. It would not be uncommon to have more groups on my radar screen than I had assets to pursue. You'd simply prioritize and catch as many as you could.
So, the theory is sound - but in practice is extremely difficult to monitor the entire border as it stands now. Also, groups/cartel guys learn where the cameras are, and simply avoid them. You do see more tunnels in areas which feature heavy camera presence.
I wish I could give you a concise and accurate answer. There are numerous terrorist organizations who have been located in Mexico, dealing or working with the cartels. Simply put the cartels are the masters of infiltrating the U.S., using their expertise.
A week after 9/11 a dozen Chechens were caught coming across the Southern border. Hezbollah militants have been spotted in Mexico. I do believe the cartels know full well this could bring a lot of heat if something horrible can be traced back to them. However, unfortunately, we had a saying in the Patrol "we only catch the dumb ones". It's very simple to catch trucks driving through the desert carrying dope, or catching large groups of illegals walking blatantly across the border.
But small, secret tunnels, small nearly-undetectable ultralight aircraft, etc. are much harder to locate. I suspect any genuine terrorist activity is kept well below our radar. Imagine the funds available to Al Qaeda, Hezbollah etc. I'm sure they can make it financially worthwhile to the cartels to assist them.
I think it deserves some serious attention - and we have intelligence agencies pursuing this exact possibility. I wish I knew more about it to answer more appropriately.
There is no release of information from a station or sector level. An illegal immigrant is only kept in custody at a station for less than 24 hours (often not more than 12). As a safety precaution we do not release information/names/locations of individuals in custody.
A person can contact the Mexican/Other consulate within 24-36 hours and they should keep a record of people returned to their country. In the event that an illegal immigrant is sent to jail or prosecuted they will eventually get a chance to make a phone call/contact relatives etc. (like a normal incarcerated/prosecuted person).
There was a lot of tension between the local indian tribal police and ourselves. The Tohono O'Odham indian police were often very shady (and caught doing rather suspicious things). The entire reservation was corrupt/dirty so these police often had family members who were into illegal stuff as well.
You'd occasionally catch the police driving at night in the desert, lights out - well beyond their patrol areas. They'd invent some story about what they were doing etc. Likewise they would attempt to pull over BP vehicles when we were tailing suspicious vehicles etc. It was always an interesting time with them.
The only issues we had with local deputies or police was simply due to manpower. They'd get mad at us when we didn't have enough agents to respond to their immigration issues, and we'd get mad when they wouldn't come pick up warrants because we were too far away from them etc. It was never harsh, just frustrating from both ends.
Sheriff Joe (Maricopa County Sheriff) was always a cool cat. I actually liked that he openly berated DHS etc. for not doing our job better. He would bring news cameras etc. with him when he turned over tons of illegal immigrants to the local I.C.E. office who didn't want to process them etc. He really gets stuff done, and doesn't take nonsense from anyone.
There is so much criminal traffic out in AZ that all LEO's pretty much gel together when the proverbial feces hit the wind oscillator. You'd always stop to back up local PD, DPS guys, or Sheriff's Deputies etc. They would likewise stop and check on you.
I was involved in a 120-mile pursuit one time which involved: BP Agents from two stations, indian police, sheriff's deputies, sheriff's drug task force, DPS, and two local police departments. It got downright confusing, but we got the vehicle. In short, we never had the silly TV show drama.
BP Agents have authority to apprehend illegal immigrants anywhere in the country. However, special statutes and laws which allow us to set up traffic check-points, inspect items/people coming into the country, and stop vehicles for immigration purposes diminishes as you move further into the country.
If, for instance I was in Ohio and someone admitted to being an illegal immigrant, I could apprehend them. This of course assumes I'm on duty and in uniform etc. In this instance I would end up taking them to the nearest I.C.E. processing center.
Illegal is illegal.
It's about 95% politics. No party nor politician wants to be responsible for losing the Latin-American vote or ruffling the feathers of Mexico's government. It would actually save us a lot of money in the long-run, given how much we spend on border security.
I was pretty impressed with the caliber of people in the Border Patrol. The academy, while not extremely tough was tough enough to weed out the idiots. There was a huge range of people in the Patrol. A large portion of ex-military folks (ranging from simple 4-year in/outs up to PJ's, some older SF types, USMC Corpsmen etc.).
A smaller number of prior law enforcement types, and then the rest were normal people like myself with no particularly advantageous background (college grads and non-college grads).
The overwhelming amount of political correctness and red tape means that in most cases the Border Patrol is a bit "too fair". Sometimes you need to cut the nonsense and get the job done, something that the agency itself hinders very often. It's a very politcal job as you can imagine. You'd be amazed how often we were subtly told to do our job...less well.
Like any job, and profession you do have a small number of idiots. There seems to be a flawed public perception that all law enforcement agents/officers should be angellic beings of good who dole out divine justice etc. Nope. Agents were normal people too. With overy 16,000 agents you definitely would have some bad apples.
There was a website active when I was serving called "Trust Betrayed" or something to that effect. It was a website run by the agency highlighting agents and customs folks who had become criminals or had been caught breaking the law etc. It happens. Not often, but it's simple reality. So, on the off chance that you run into that one dirtbag, your experience may be different than most.
As a whole, yes, the agency is competent and fair.
You never end up dehumanizing people. That being said, business is business, work is work, and the law is the law. Our job isn't to hug and nurture people, it's to apprehend them and secure the border as best as possible.
In that regard you become like most seasoned EMT's and nurses...you're doing your job. The emotional baggage is best left behind. Anyone in a line of service (EMT's, firefighters, paramedics, cops etc.) definitely gets very accustomed to "crap". You run into enough tragedies, evil, wickedness, violence, abuse etc. that you become quite accustomed to it. You just accept it and move along with your job.
The people we apprehended were dealt with quickly, efficiently and professionally. We don't coddle people, but we don't beat them or treat them like animals etc.
I'd say that of the groups that we detected or spotted we apprehended around 30-35%. That figure improved quite a bit following 9/11, as DHS/CBP had a large hiring push and went from around 8,000 agents to around 16,000.
Since then it seems to have been pretty steady. As apprehensions increase the Mexicans and cartel guys become a bit more creative. It's a constant back and forth. There is no genuine progress being made toward "shutting down the border" or "stopping illegal immigration" etc. Unfortunately that is not a political goal of either party.
That would be a question for your consulate and the Immigration authorities. Normally if you were brought into the U.S. as a child it should not hurt your application process, but I can not state one way or the other.
You may be able to contact the office of a federal immigration judge for a proper answer.
That's a question for a BP recruiter. I think it would depend entirely on the type of felony. My gut instinct says "nope", but I could be wrong.
All of these questions are completely dependent on the station/sector and the needs of the shift. You could have over 100 agents per shift. Agents operate singles or in pairs, but when a task is called out on the radio who knows how many could show up. Bike teams and horses were often 4-8 agents depending on the shift. It also depends on how many agents were available, how supervisors preferred to work an area, and how busy traffic was in certain areas.
We could do with a lot more Sheriff Joes in this world. He is a dying breed. For someone that people complain about a lot, he's been in office now for what 15-20 years and keeps getting re-elected? He's doing his job (a difficult one at that). The modern world seems to hate people with real work ethic or real opinions/values.
I applaud the guy. He has way too many enemies...that, if anyting, proves he's doing a hell of a job.
Yep, very depressing and stressful. Living in AZ it's more than obvious we're not making much of a difference. From Phoenix to the border the state has been flooded with illegal immigrants. You'd see hundreds daily just on the drive in to work. So, short answer - no I did not feel like we were making much of a difference.
It was also very obvious from the agency perspective that there was no genuine desire to effect real change. The USBP is about 50% just a dog and pony show. But we all knew that. We busted our butts, worked hard - but at the end of the day we knew the government etc. was not genuinely serious about "closing the border".
Getting into the USBP is not overly difficult. You are perfectly qualified. The only issue would be whether or not the USBP is hiring or not. The academy is always running in some fashion. Classes are put through to fill slots as agents retire/transfer to other agencies.
Like every other politically-volatile agency the BP goes through hiring phases, and hiring freezes. When I joined it was part of the push from 8,000 agents up to 15,000+. The academy was absolutely packed, running overtime. Since then numbers have gone down a bit at the academy.
I would see if you can contact a recruiting agent. They may be able to start the hiring process and have you wait to finish your degree (above al things - finish your degree!) to report to the academy.
Not sure, I have no experience in status applications. That would be a question better addressed to the officers you're dealing with during the application process.
Never worked with the US Marshals. You could apply direct to the Marshals though, unless you don't believe you have the resume to do so.
Pretty much zero chance. He will likely be flown back to Albania on an ICE flight.
You can try, but don't bother. This will come up in your application process, and you'll be disqualified.
I don't believe so. The application process has no real steps you can skip or speed up. However, if you contact the agents you work with they would possibly be able to put you in touch with the Sector's recruitment agents who might be able to tell you more.
The last couple of weeks before you graduate start looking...that's the beauty of the internet. Start researching and contact apartment complexes near your station etc. Heck you could even check into one of those hotels that lets you pay by the week for the first couple of weeks. Me and my classmates found a house to rent via Craigslist. We stayed there for 6 months then all moved to our own apartments/houses.
It's up to you to arrange the move of your family. It's not easy, but you'll figure it out. Just don't sign any papers or leases until you graduate. You should be able to tell the home owner or apartment complex your situation.
Not at all. Stolen vehicles are cheap and disposable. We used to capture dozens of stolen vehicles per week. It's also why car insurance is incredibly high in the South West compared to other parts of the country (especially if you own a full size pickup truck). They are also very fond of using rental cars (obviously with no intention to return them).
If they get chased, they'll just get away if they can and then bail out. It's far too expensive/time consuming to use properly purchased vehicles. The vehicles we're talking about are used for delivering large amounts of weed being shipped to local stash houses. When they are talking about dispersal, they're not talking about normal street dealers. These vehicles would be loaded with 1500-2000 lbs. of weed each.
Sometimes they even drive these vehicles in pairs or trios. There are tons of small-time cartel lackeys in Phoenix, Tucson etc. who's job is solely to steal vehicles and bring them down to the border, stash them in the desert for use by drivers.
It's quite easy actually. During the interview/processing, it is very easy to establish whether someone is a citizen or not. This is also why we process everyone we catch. Once you're caught crossing the border (which, by the way, is illegal for U.S. citizens as well - you're required to cross at a designated Port of Entry, through customs etc.) you're processed into the immigration database.
O.T.M's frequently would travel with no documents, trying to masquerade as Mexicans (because it was easier to pretend to be a Mexican, and be returned to the border...as opposed to being flown back to their native country). A simple interview would reveal their false claims very simply. This is part of your training, basic interrogration techniques.
There was never a case during my time in the Patrol where we had an issue revealing someone's true origin/identity. Proper names etc. were another story. I'd say perhaps 50-70% of illegals had a number of aliases/false names/identities, stolen or forged social security numbers etc. In this instance, a person's identity in the U.S. legal system is that name/identity under which they originally were processed.
I'm not entirely sure, but I'd believe so. Children are always at the mercy of their parents decision, regardless of their citizenship. A case would have to be made to the authorities (child protective services) to warrant removing the children from their parents.
No idea. That's a customs question, so I'm not sure. Mexican customs is pretty lax.
Jai,
This website exists for occupational questions, not debates on police procedure. If you have questions or concerns regarding immigrations laws and procedures, you need to contact a consulate or a sector headquarters, perhaps even an ICE field office. I'll simply say this, in four years and thousands of people apprehended, we never had a person who was wrongfully imprisoned or caught. If a person is caught lying to a federal agent, you've now committed a crime worse than illegal entry.
If a person lies about his country of origina successfully and gets sent to another country, well he'll have to deal with their immigration service or federal police. Feel free to take your chances. I've met Guatemalan and Mexicon federal police - not the guys you probably want to screw around with.
Yes.
The vast majority of our canines (at least our normal detection/tracking canines) were actually imported from the German Border Police (Bundesgrenschutz) canine school. Most of the dogs we received had actually failed bite-dog school, and had been repurposed. This is why our K9 operators use many commands in German, as opposed to English.
Right before I left the BP was starting its bite-dog program, but they had a silly politically correct name for it (Patrol K9's was the term they used) because they were afraid of scaring people (?). I do not know where the bite-dogs were sourced from.
All of the dogs I worked with were from the German schools.
All of the above. While it depends a lot on terrain and your local conditions, you have a large array of operations.
In our area we had a few "X"s...these are static locations watching a particular point of interest. You then had patroling units, which would actively be cutting for sign (footprints, debris, trash, spoor) which would indicate a recent group or vehicles. You also had static ground-sweeping radar. You had bike units which would operate further in from the border. You also had occasional aviation units when we could spare them.
In addition to this you have a large number of magnetic and seismic sensors which would register back at the station. During the day, we also had a Horse Patrol unit which specialized in rougher terrain (they were quite good up in the more mountainous regions).
Now, in some places like Nogales (nicknamed "Nogadishu" for the level of violence about a decade ago) it's an entirely different situation, as the USBP there is operating inside a city etc. Likewise, some stations operate solely in the mountains and operate heavily by airlifting agents around in helicopters etc.
It varies immensely by station.
I have no idea. The exam is made for people who have no prior Border Patrol experience, so I am not sure you'd have a big advantage.
You get very very basic intelligence training, but nothing that will make you stand out. In fact those courses were FLETC courses and not the BP courses, so they may not even include them anymore.
Like everything else, the BP does have intel units. However these units are small, and very difficult to land (normally going to senior agents). If you were able to get into intel in the BP, then yes I'd imagine there would be a decent amount of crossover.
I am currently doing a certificate in Intelligence Analysis with an online university as that field interests me as well. I would probably suggest getting some college credits or degrees in intelligence if that's really what your end goal is. Of course, working in the BP would give you the money to do so.
Good luck!
Yes. Well technically not for you to leave the country, but if you come back into the US (even as a US citizen) it is illegal to enter without crossing through a designated Port of Entry. Likewise you have no protection if you are apprehended by Mexican authorities (though they rarely watch their border).
Short answer: yes. Law enforcement work of any type has statistically been very hard on families and relationships. Unfortunately law enforcement officers have a much higher rate of substance abuse, suicide, etc. It's a high stress line of work, working long hours, and dealing with the bottom of society. A lot of people live fine, normal lives - but the numbers are pretty bad. High rate of divorce is common. I do think the BP might be better than some local LEO work. I was away for an average of 11 hours a day, so if you have loved ones or family, it can be very taxing.
Yep.
It would make a transition to ICE much easier, but the FBI is never easy to get into. They recruit very specific people from very specific fields. It can't hurt your chances, but I would not join the BP planning on simply switching over to the FBI. The FBI posts what they're looking for on their website. You'd be better off getting a degree that they're interested in.
That question will come up during your background investigation and/or polygraph test. I'm not sure what effect a positive answer would have in that situation. It is something that will come up for any government job which involves any level of security clearance though, and I doubt it can help.
Unfortunately in certain lines of work - those things you do on purpose or by accident as a young person can come back and bite you in the ass. I know several of my fellow agents had smoked weed before joining the BP, but I don't know if they answered truthfully during their background investigations.
Personally I think weed should be legalized, but I imagine it might depend on the person doing your background investigation.
I've never even heard of an ICE locator, but as ICE deals with internal immigration handling, if they have a locator it will only contain illegals who are serving jail time for other crimes. The BP does not keep an active record of people in custody since most illegals are returned within 24 hours.
If someone is killed along the border (bandits, cartel etc.) the body will be handled by the local police department as with any other homicide. If the person has no identification or records then they'll be buried without identity. This is pretty common, as many people who die in the desert are consumed by wildlife within 24-36 hours, so identification becomes nearly impossible unless identification is carried by the person.
If a citizen of another country is found dead, and identified then the police department will likely contact their country of origin an attempt to locate relatives.
You can. I don't recommend it, for obvious reasons. This has been discussed previously.
Depends on the criminal history. If prosecuted, as long as needed. If not prosecuted, only 24 hours in the U.S.
US citizens will be prosecuted for human trafficking/smuggling charges.
Varies due to conditions of the smuggling (how many, how dangerous, previous criminal record, etc.).
This has been answered in the questions above.
Illegal immigrants seldom end up in court. If they do, it is by their choice, selecting a "notice to appear" action where they will go and plead their case with an immigration judge. This seldom results in a different result. If a person has the means they may attempt to hire an immigration lawyer to aid them in their plea. This is not like normal criminal court, as the simple physical presence of a person in the US illegally is obvious proof of guilt. If an illegal immigrant goes to court for criminal charges they will get a normal defense lawyer as any other criminal.
It's not forbidden...just stupid. A BPA going into Mexico does so at his own risk. Considering you'll be catching and apprehending thousands of illegal Mexicans, it's not exactly the smartest place to go. But there is not a policy against it.
Our dope (marijuana and otherwise) was picked up and disposed of by the DEA.
It depends on where you are. I'd say our area was easily 80% Mexican, 15% OTM's from central and South America, and perhaps 5% from other countries. In California though you can run into large groups of orientals. I'm not sure what the overall percentages are. I believe this would probably be published somewhere - perhaps simply google it.
No.
Honestly I don't even remember. If I recall they were quite simple, logic based questions - to verify that you're not a complete dolt. The part I was more concentrated on was the language aptitude part. That was, interesting.
There is not a dictionary that I am aware of. A candidate must be fluent in English in order to be a BPA. Most of the trainees in my class who failed out of the academy had poor English skills and were unable to pass the classes and law tests. The law classes require excellent English as there is a lot of legal language which is extremely important to comprehend.
If they discover you have been apprehended crossing the border illegally it will negatively impact your VISA application, particularly if you were deported (in which case you are unable to apply for 5 years, then 10 years, and then ever).
BORTAC is difficult and something you won't hop into without a few years in the field. BORTAC/SRT are small units, in a large agency so the competition is pretty fierce, but not impossible.
You'll be fine.
With ICE? Probably very easy - FBI not so much. They're extremely high speed, and very picky. I only knew one BP guy who went over to the FBI and he was for all intents and purposes a rock star (top of his class, made sup' early, became SRT, then SRT sup' etc.). It is a great entry into federal law enforcement though. You'll do fine, and can likely go a lot of places. Also, remember there are a ton of agencies people have never heard of.
Technically yes, though in wildly different areas. BP patrols the border, while in theory ICE would be enforcing similar laws within the United States interior. However, in practice ICE does very little, as they're small and underfunded and can not adequately carry out their job. They end up handling immigration detainers from local prisons/jails etc. They also handle long-distance deportations by plane etc.
Nope. Once released from federal service for that kind of issue you won't be rehired.
Not unless they have re-introduced the OR or "Own recognizance" statute. This was the ridiculously flawed and useless process used in the late 80's and early 90's whereby an illegal immigrant would sign a document stating he would return at a specific date to be processed and deported (due to lack of holding facilities). Needless to say...NONE of these people ever showed back up to be deported, and the immigration services had no way of tracking them down. So, back in the day? Yes. Currently? Not that I've heard of. Now, perhaps local police departments or Sheriff's offices do something like this - but normally they simply call up the local ICE or CBP office and turn them over.
Contact their consulate to directly contact the US and look into her status. If it was June, she's either in jail, or has already been flown back to Honduras. It is also likely she lied and said she was a Mexican in order to avoid being flown back.
I have not personally, but it was not uncommon to come across the remnants of drug violence. The cartels did battle each other frequently North of the border. We'd occasionally happen across a shot up vehicle, or blood trails, occasionally a dead body or two. The really brutal stuff was mainly down South (chopped up bodies etc.)
I'd suspect Phoenix and Tucson PD had more encountered with drug deal scenes - our area was more trafficking and very little to no dealing.
Not sure, as I have never worked a proper Port of Entry (POE). Perhaps you can find a customs guy on Jobstr who will have more experience with passport information.
Being on the border we mostly caught the material (ie. dope) coming North. Occasionally though our units on the highway would grab a cash vehicle going back south (vehicles loaded with drug-profit cash heading back into Mexico). The only ones I remember were pretty low-dollar amounts ($7-10K). I'd imagine the serious cash is much better concealed/protected/transported.
I'd bet the DPS guys (Arizona's Highway Patrol) probably had more apprehensions along these lines.
Contact your consulate and have them contact CBP.
It does not currently, and I doubt it did previously. If it's an offensive tattoo in an obvious location - possibly. No face tattoos or stupid nonsense on your knuckles/neck/etc.
MJ,
Not sure where Tubac is. Nogales is of course reasonable, and very busy. It would be "Border Patrol" though, as we're not pirates! And yes, you would visit other stations or sector headquarters to attend training or special classes. During days in which you are on the schedule for training you would be fine wearing your uniform out to lunch/dinner in the process. You're still on duty and should something silly happen you would respond and work as normal.
I'm not sure where you'd find this kind of information compiled. It may be available directly through a CBP office. The term you'd be using is "OTM" (Other than Mexican). Each sector in the BP has a headquarters with various agents assigned to public relations etc. That would be the place to start.
I haven't been to that location so I couldn't tell you. Sorry.
Absolutely not. While the Border Patrol is paramilitary in its operations and organization, we still follow normal law enforcement procedures.
Most non-cartel related illegals are not bringing firearms here, though it does happen on occasion. They are often for self-defense from bandits etc., and not for use agains the Border Patrol. Remember, in Mexico firearms are "illegal", meaning only the powerful, rich, and cartels (who are both powerful and rich) have weapons.
The cartels on the other hand are extremely well armed, moreso than the Border Patrol. However, there is a small amount of common sense in the cartel members higher up. They know if they begin a big shooting war with the Border Patrol that security will be stepped up and we'll bring the military to the border etc. They predominantly stick to shooting at each other and the Mexican police and military (I've witnessed running gun battles on the Mexican side from a radar post).
Even once in the U.S., cartel groups are normally armed in order to fight each other. We had numerous running gunfights up and down I-10 (main highway from Tucson to Phoenix/California), and gunfights in Tucson, Phoenix and other cities. There are a lot of shootings in the desert between cartels, bandits, and groups of illegals. It is normally rare for a BP Agent to be shot at. This is often a couple of pot shots taken at us from across the border.
I've been on duty during a couple of shootings, but have not been shot at personally. Likewise, I've drawn my gun in numerous cases and have been fortunate enough to not need to use it. I've had a fair share of incidents where someone tried to run me over in a vehicle/run me off the road etc.
It does happen though. Like all law enforcement, we are absolutely justified in using lethal force when threatened with extreme bodily harm/death etc. In the weeks before I left the Patrol we had five shootings in our area: two were agent involved shootings, one was a sheriff involved shooting, and two more between illegals and bandits. Only one of these even made the local paper.
The USBP and other government agencies do everything in their power to keep the situation on the border hush-hush. They don't want people to realize that it's the wild west out there. The coverage you see on television, and NATGEO is about 10% of the nonsense going on out there.
Now to address your last question - I don't believe ANY law enforcement agency in the country has a policy allowing you to shoot an unarmed person fleeing you (except perhaps in the case of a prisoner fleeing a prison?). This is what we in the community would refer to as a "bad shoot", meaning the employment of lethal force outside of our "use of force continuum" = a detailed policy which dictates what levels of force an agent is allowed to use in certain circumstances.
These do happen in law enforcement, be it by accident or pure negligence. That's an unfortunate reality.
That is probably mostly done for the camera. If you're within a mile or two of the border, everyone (including the illegals) knows what's going on. Many times they see agents and sit down. They know the drill. If you're operating on a highway or in another area you will identify yourself. Tourists or travellers who are not used to the border area won't know who/what you are etc.
I do believe it is policy to identify yourself...but the uniforms and big vehicles with "BORDER PATROL" on them, kind of give it away. Now, having said that - there are groups of bandits (Mexican criminals who actually prey on other groups of Mexican illegals) who try to dress up as the Border Patrol (wearing similar outfits etc.). They will shout out Border Patrol as they encounter groups and then rob them.
In other sectors where there are towns and populations I am sure it's a vastly diffierent circumstance. In the middle of the desert you'll only find agents, illegals and cartel guys.
This is explained in the previous answers to this type of question above.
The process is the same. However, if the minor is unattended they are kept separated from the local population at processing centers, and the Mexican/Other consulate is notified for handling when they are returned to Mexico. They are cared for specially, but the overall process remains the same.
While I never encountered this (personally), the response would be the same. They would be apprehended, and a whole mess of phone calls would be made. I imagine some other agencies may get involved, etc.
However, if it was with good intentions and by accident, I believe the Mexican official would be apprehended, and offered a very quick Voluntary Return as most illegals get. Of course, he may get his ass chewed when he goes back South!
In some areas along the border, it's so mountainous and rugged that USBP or Mexican may have a darn hard time determining where the border actually is. As mentioned in another answer above we have had some "issues" with Mexican law enforcement and their military. But, again, if it was a simple mistake, it would not be a huge deal. Now, if, during the apprehension the officer decided to put up a fight or get into a gunfight with agents - then that's his decision and appropriate actions would be taken as with any other subject.
Let me preface this answer by saying that I've never smoked marijuana. I had plenty of opportunities to in college, but I don't smoke and never felt the need to try it.
I do believe that it should be legalized though. It's a simple, non-deadly drug which is less harmful or dangerous than alcohol. Marijuana possession has stocked our prison system with millions of people who don't need to be there (though, due to being in prison - they often become criminals in the long run).
My opinion: legalize it, regulate it's production (so that it's safer) and tax the crap out of it.
I understand this would require a lot of new laws, and procedures. I do think you should get a DUI if you're caught out driving while high - because it does reduce your reaction time and motor skills enough to be a hazard. This is the hardest part about legalizing it.
The reality of legalization is that it likely won't happen. The U.S. government has invested so much time/money/effort in villainizing the drug that I doubt they could abruptly change their stance. That would require swallowing an awful lot of pride.
In addition to this, legalization of marijuana should not be pursued as an avenue to "shut down" the cartels. This won't happen. The cartel organizations are far too large to be destroyed by such a simple tactic. They would simply fight each other for the now-legal production of marijuana, and devote their manpower and expertise to other criminal enterprises or more of the serious drugs (cocaine, meth, etc.).
Also, if we legalized marijuana, and taxed it heavily - cartel provided marijuana might still be sought after because it would potentially be much cheaper.
I'm essentially all for legalizing it, but I don't imagine it will happen anytime soon on a federal level, and I do not see it as a cure-all for the cartel problems.
While it's tough to really narrow down the variety of amusing/weird stuff that happened...it was pretty commonplace to find yourself thinking "What in the world?".
We caught a 17 year old kid after a 110 mile long pursuit...only to find out he was high on meth, wearing rainbow coloured socks (the type with the individual toes) professing "I don't even love that boy!". I've caught grown men wearing shirts in English that they don't understand (What is a girl like me doing in a place like this?) etc.
Stories with the local Indians are obnoxious and too...vile to post up here on a public website. I've seen a grown man run full speed into a gigantic sajuaro cactus. I've had stray dogs lead me to groups of illegals because the dogs knew they'd get food (free K-9's!). We had a couple of white trash fellows shooting a handgun at an IED. When detonated by the bomb squad, the IED was big enough to blow up a truck, so I feel those guys were lucky.
Every day just had really...odd things that would happen. These become pretty normal though, so they don't seem weird until you sit back and think about them for a while.
The name doesn't ring a bell to me. I can't say I've ever heard of him.
Nope. Not even close.
I hate to make broad sweeping judgements about international affairs but I think it's safe to say that the situation is so wildly out of control it will never be "eliminated". The cartels are big enough that there simply is no way to wipe them out - even with conventional military forces.
It is much more out of control than you see on TV. The cartels are quite good about terrifying the media, reporters, news agencies etc. They strung up the mutilated bodies of two bloggers last year - hung them from a highway overpass. The bloggers had been saying negative things about the cartels. The media have turned a blind eye to most of their operations, and I don't blame them.
How do you turn the tide? I have no idea. That's akin to asking how you make people simply stop committing crimes. It's not an answer anyone has. Corruption in Mexico is found at every single level of every department/agency etc. This means that the cartel is absolutely ingrained in the Mexican government, etc.
I applaud the efforts of politicians and the good police/military folks...but I think it's a fight they're losing. What you probably need in Mexico is a social uprising by the entire country. There is no reason why Mexicans should have to come to the U.S. to make money. They have a beautiful country which could be a stellar 2nd world place. It would be bloody and incredibly violent, but I'd like to see the entire population of Mexico stand up against the cartels and kick them out.
It'd be nice to see Mexicans take back Mexico. I don't see it in the cards in the near future though.
I have no experience on the Northern border so I can't really answer this question. I also don't understand what you mean by "for CBP to hassle...". If by hassle you mean they inspect you etc. when you come across - that's simply normal. I can't speak for what your definition of hassle is. As a LEO, I have seen plenty of people who get outrageously upset when we're simply doing our job.
Speaking from a Southern border perspective, sure everyone who enters the U.S. legally through a POE is recorded in some fashion.
For the record USCIS no longer exists. The new layout is now DHS (Department of Homeland Security), subset CBP (Customs and Border Protection), and then USBP (United States Border Patrol). DHS also controls I.C.E., etc. The old USCIS under the Department of Justice is no more.
I am sorry I can't give you a better answer - I don't know what "hassles" you're going through or why. From a general perspective 9/11 and the huge illegal immigrant problem will undoubtedly put more restrictions, hassles, and policies through which will make it much more aggravating/difficult for people who are doing it right and legally. This is similar to many other things in law enforcement. The bad apples (criminals) ruin it for normal people on a daily basis.
Very often, but this depended very much on the season - needless to say, summer months were the worst. I could not give you a percentage, but my station would find perhaps 50+ bodies a year. Add another 100+ in serious physical distress.
Many of the causes of death could not be determined by a simple glance. In AZ a body will be taken down to bones in less than 72 hours. When encountering a dead body we would refer it to the local Indian Police who would call their detectives etc. We were not trained in that stuff, so we'd simply secure the scene.
With all the crime in the desert it was anybody's guess how these people died. Many of the ones reported to us by other illegals would be located, and had died of dehydration (or some other form of sickness). We also did a lot of life-flights out of the desert when someone was in a bad way.
When a person gets dehydrated that badly, even if you life-flight them out and they make it to a hospital they will likely die. We were responsible for hospital watches, where we'd be stationed in a room with a person in custody. A dehydrated person would make a recovery within a day or two - but often their kidneys and other organs had already gone bad, and they would then pass a day or two later.
Some illegals were shot by bandits or cartel guys, or other illegals. Again, when you come across a pile of pink bones in the desert, it's hard to judge.
For these reasons, we are all very competent at search and rescue. We had a large number of EMT's and other first responders amongst the normal agents. When something very serious popped up we could call on BORSTAR (Border Special Tactics and Rescue) who are a specially trained unit of paramedics and rescue specialists.
With the size of the desert, we'd do everything we could to find people who were left, or in distress - but you can only spend so many man-hours on someone.
Many more illegals died at the hands of their smugglers (commonly called "coyotes"). These were often the result of horrific vehicle accidents. The smugglers would crash a truck carrying 30-40 people standing up in the bed. You can do the math I'm sure. These were the really serious incidents, where you'd have a dozen illegals killed and a dozen or more sent to hospital for serious surgeries, some paralyzed etc.
I, myself, only came across a handful of dead bodies in my time with the Patrol. I did respond to a couple of crime scenes, a homicide etc. I partook in search and rescue efforts a handful of times, and did find a number of stranded people. All in all, a dangerous place. I only ever really felt sorry for the kids. Some groups would leave behind 8-12 year old kids who couldn't keep up with the group. That angered me. No one should put a kid through that, or leave them behind to die.
While I never looked too hard into it, we had a couple of options. Each station would have a handful of specialized units: Horse Patrol, Bikes, ATV's, Radar Operators, EMT's, first responders, etc.
Then each sector (which consisted of 4-6 stations, sometimes more) would have an SRT team, and a BORSTAR team. These teams would draw agents from the stations, and you'd work out of the sector headquarters. These teams deployed throughout the sector and also worked a lot of local stuff with other law enforcement agencies and local police departments.
You had some national level units such as BORTAC which would deploy on special assignments around the country. You also had "National SRT" and "National BOSTAR" etc. which were also nationally deployed. If I understand correctly, units such as BORTAC used to be employed outside of the U.S. (countering drug cartels in Central/South America) but are no longer used abroad.
These teams are obviously on call for any overly serious incidents. During things like Katrina the entire BP BORSTAR/BORTAC/SRT community is put on standby and many of them were utilized for SAR duties etc. When President Bush spoke at our Academy, the national SRT and BORTAC units were there to work with the Secret Service etc.
So it varies, but typical the real special type units begin at the sector level. I never worked in any of these units, though I frequently worked alongside them. Take the information here with a grain of salt as it may have changed or may be much more detailed than I have put forth here.
The cartels are so busy - they have much bigger fish to fry. That being said, any LEO should always be on their guard. You're definitely not the most popular person. As far as Mexico for vacation - I'm not that gullible. Any country that suffers 60,000 people killed over a five year span along the border doesn't get any tourist money from me. It's on the State Department's "not recommended" list, but it won't stop Americans from trying to save a buck on liquor etc.
I was and still am rather scrawny, so the academy was tough - but if I made it through, anyone should be able to. Regarding Spanish, they have eased the requirements significantly - but this is a bad move in my opinion. They teach very compartmented spanish in small blocks...so you learn commands vs. actually learning the language. You could always grab Rosetta Stone and start learning Spanish. It wouldn't hurt. The other alternative is to get a feisty Spanish-speaking girlfriend/boyfriend and learn the hard way.
I'm not entirely sure what happened to you. However, if you've been caught (by any law enforcement agency) with illegal substances it's often recorded by dispatch officers/personnel. If your license plate is run by other law enforcement officers/agents this information will pop up. This assists officers and agents in knowing what they're dealing with when they do a traffic stop. Prior arrests, detentions, and warnings etc. are noted in the large database.
It's simple night vision and FLIR as carried by the military and other law enforcement agencies. Also the "midnight sun" or ridiculous huge powerful flood lights.
Nope. Horrible. We had more issues, pursuits, assaults etc. from the Tohono O'odham people than we did from Mexican illegals. I'd say 75% of my encounters with TO's were negative. The vast majority of U.S. citizen smugglers we arrested were TO's. There is simply massive amounts of criminal activity on the reservation. Even some of the police and rangers were up to no good.
A drunk TO ran one of my ex-trainees off the road and killed him. We had numerous incidents where TO's would apprehend Mexican females and sexually assault/abuse them for weeks before someone found out.
There were a small number of TO's who would assist the BP, and this was normally out of spite for other TO's (one household or family would rat out another household/family). As a whole though, an extremely negative relationship.
Many of the TO's resented us because other than their own police/rangers and Sheriffs (who almost never went onto the reservation) we were the only law enforcement agency which was allowed to enter and operate on their land. They despised us for this. We ended up enforcing or assisting in a lot of non-immigration law enforcement duties because the TO's were always drunk and getting into trouble.
The BP rolled over and played nice (this is the kinder/gentler America after all) and refused to stand firm whenever an argument came up. It was quite disappointing. Everything was handled with kid-gloves, which was sickening to watch in many instances.
So, short answer: No. Not a good relationship.
Yes and no. In order to claim asylum a person must go before an immigration judge and provide substantial proof/evidence that his/her life is in danger. Essentially you can't just say "well, we have cartels and they're dangerous so I don't want to go back.".
You'd have to present a solid case that you, specifically, would be targeted for harm (as in some countries where citizens who practice certain religions are specifically targeted for execution/genocide etc.). I have no experience in the immigration courts, but I can imagine this is pretty tough to prove for the average illegal immigrant.
Now if an illegal could somehow prove that he himself has been seriously threatened with imminent harm/death...maybe, just maybe you could try to get asylum here.
Absolutely. That is, in fact, the only simple, legal way we'll ever stop the immigration problem. However, we, as BP agents are not part of that process. I.C.E. and other agencies handle that (or, don't handle that...).
I'm all for serious, crushing penalties for companies or individuals who hire illegals. I mean huge, business-destroying fines or serious jailtime. However, since we don't enforce this much at all, instead the U.S. market (and yes, unfortunately, our citizens) encourage more illegal immigration by readily hiring and pandering to illegals.
Americans would rather save a few bucks on their grocery bill.
This has been answered in a previous question above. Short answer: contact your consulate and have them contact the BP/law enforcement agency responsible.
That would depend entirely on the type of medication, what it effects and if it's a regulated substance etc. If it would affect your ability to drive, operate under stress, or handle machinery then I'd guess no. This is something you'd have to discuss with the doctor who would do your physical (or email a BP recruiting agent about it prior to applying).
Never encountered any Cubans. I'd imagine they would get the same benefit - as that's more of an asylum-style issue. No experience with it though.
Very possible. Part of the background investigation process involves analysis of your financial situation. If you're too broke to pay some tickets, you are probably in pretty serious debt. This is frowned upon because a person who is in severe financial distress is more likely to accept bribes or other criminal payments.
Also, if you have warrants for "failure to appear" etc. this will be an issue. All of this will depend on the number of tickets, amount of money owed and your other financial situations.
Jozelin,
While I don't have the contact information handy, you can contact Tucson Sector Headquarters and ask to speak with a recruiting agent. They will get you sorted out with the process, etc.
This only happened a handful of times - but yes. It was also very common to catch illegals with our baggage tags on their packs from the day before. It was pretty common while preparing a deportation file to find the previous file had been done by an agent from our station.
With so many illegals and about 500 agents per station, it was a bit rare to catch the same person yourself. I can recall 3-4 times this happened to me personally. A couple were from days earlier and yes we recognized each other. The others I had caught the year before and one mentioned it to me, the other I realized when I was processing them in the system.
I'm not sure. I know it is a hit against you, and it is a question which comes up in the interview process. It is enough to disqualify you for a large number of federal jobs though.
Nope, a felony drug charge will effectively nix the VISA application.
Joining any specialty unit in the Border Patrol requires that you must have at least a year or two of field time. I worked with the Horse Patrol guys a lot, but I'm not sure if they were all previous horse riders. I'd think so, as it's not an easily learned skill. Also, be advised that the Horse Patrol is constantly on the verge of being cut out of the Border Patrol - as it is costly and time consuming to keep and maintain horses.
The Horse Patrol spends a lot of extra hours trailering and keeping up their horses. Sorry I can't be of more help on this question. I am comfortable suggesting that you should know how to ride a horse prior. Many stations do not have Horse Patrols - as they have been replaced by dirt bikes in many locations. However, stations like mine kept Horse Patrol for use near the mountains and certain areas where they were more useful than dirt bikes.
Did you get a job offer? I took the test, scored well and it took me a while to get an offer letter. It's up to you. There are a lot of excellent agents who scraped through the academy etc. If it's something you want to do, give it a shot. You won't know unless you try.
If you apply for the BP they will give you a couple of options of your initial station. If you accept one of these options they will then send you to the academy. If you refuse those options you are put back in the hiring pool and may have to wait a while. So, in theory you could wait until a station close to San Diego becomes available, but this may take years, etc. If you're actively pursuing the job, take whatever station you can get - and then you can attempt to move stations in about 2-3 years.
Not sure. When I entered service they were still doing a full background investigation, so there was no polygraph test administered. Can't help you there.
Sure, it would. The military can prepare you for a lot of stuff which translate over to the BP (as the BP is a very para-military organization). I had several Marines in my academy class. they were pretty squared away, but...oddly, they couldn't swim that well!? I'd probably suggest the Marines before the BP if you're young and looking to start a new life.
We do use dogs frequently, at least one or two per shift. They're very useful, but dogs are high maintenance because they can get injured paws etc. very easily out in the desert. I agree we should have had more of them. They're very effective. K9 handlers also have to have special vehicles, and get special compensation (extra pay) to cover the time they spend looking after the dog. They also do quite a bit of training, and we often used them at check points.
I think it's a matter of time/training/money that prevents us from having more.
If you are accused of a crime and arrested, yes you can be deported. Fighting someone is not a crime. A little silly and immature, but not a crime. Now if you assault him, and charges are filed, yes you will be in violation of your immigration status and subject to the consequences.
I couldn't give you an answer on that. I only knew one Native American agent at my station of 450-500 agents. But I can not speak for other stations/sectors. I would imagine the percentage is incredibly small.
Honestly I can't remember. The logical reasoning portion is the easiest part of the exam though. I wouldn't stress over it. Sorry I can't recall the times - it might be explained in the paperwork prior to your test though.
It's pretty easy to pick them out. Many of the coyotes though are career coyotes. They've been doing this stuff for years, if not decades. We could very easily spot or figure out the coyotes if we caught them. However, they're normally pretty smart and would bail or abandon the group when they could tell agents were nearby. Illegals rarely 'turned in" coyotes, because they knew there could be repercussions for them later, back in Mexico etc.
Yes. A foreign citizen who has remained in the U.S. on an expired visa is out of status and breaking the law. He is committing a crime by falsely remaining in the country outside of the conditions of his visa.
Constantly. Needless to say in the desert it's not uncommon to find yourself dodging snakes, spiders and scorpions. On the TO Reservation where I worked they had free-roaming cattle and horses. Occasionally you'd get an angry bull which would try to charge Agents who were on foot. This was even mor exciting when you were on foot in the dark and could hear that sucker running. The TO Res. was also home to thousands of wild dogs (half dog/half coyote). We had several agents who were forced to shoot dogs which attacked them.
The main concern was hitting horses or cows on the highways. The TO Indians put up no fences or cattle protection. The cows would be in the middle of the highway. We could wreck 1-2 vehicles a month in this fashion. The TO's didn't mind because the government would pay out far more money for the lost cattle than the ranchers could earn by selling it. So, an agent hitting a cow on the road in the middle of the night meant a payout for the rancher - even though they took absolutely no measures to prevent this.
I did know one agent who rolled his truck, avoiding a horse, and was paralyzed from the neck down. That was a tragic waste.
Another spooky incident involved one of our helicopters spotting a mountain lion which was stalking an agent up in the mountains. The agent was lucky that the helicopter spotted it with their night vision. They originally called the agent and told him that his K9 unit was coming up behind him. Needless to say the agent wasn't a K9 handler, so...
So while I wouldn't say they were a constant "problem" it was simply part of the environment you operated in. One agent did find a gila monster in his truck one day. Those suckers can be vicious!
Nope. In fact if he gets caught and deported again the ban will increase to 20 years. This is the penalty for breaking the law.
This is an interesting question. I'll simply say this: if you have committed crimes, felonies, etc. in the past - do not pursue becoming a federal agent. First, they'll likely not hire you, secondly - you're not in the right mindset, nor of the moral character to be doing this line of work.
If this is a concern for anyone who is taking the polygraph test - you should already leave the application process. They are not the kind of people we need, nor will hire.
That's a shockingly broad general law enforcement question. It would depend solely on the warrant and circumstances of the raid. If agents see something in plain sight in your house or yard..yes...or if they are hot pursuit of a suspect, yes. There are a few instances where this is legal - many others where it is not. It's too broad of a question to begin to answer.
(See response below)
It will come up in your 5-year investigations, yes...though it would depend entirely on the nature of the circumstances. A child involved can impact your ability to perform your job without bias, or may lead to financial vulnerability.
No. You could likely get rehired without a fuss, but you will go through most of the same stuff, and must attend the academy etc.
Answered previously.
Good question. There are loads of things we likely "should" do, but many we don't. I assume you're referring to Canadian crossings, including booths and remote cameras. I have no experience up there, so I'm not sure how they operate.
(Note: I deleted the duplicate question)
While it may be a little...inappropriate, I don't believe social interactions are against any kind of policy. This would be the same as a normal police officer asking someone out on a date.
An agent could not pull someone over just to try to socialize with them - that violates all sorts of policies. Likewise no law enforcement officer/agent is allowed to use their power to find out personal information about someone. An agent can not run a cute girl's license plate just to get her name/address etc. That stuff is against the law and will land an agent in jail.
If you were just going through a normal Border Patrol check point and an agent socialized with you, this is technically completely legal/fine. A Border Patrol agent is allowed to have a social/dating relationship with anyone as long as they are not illegal aliens or here on a violation of status.
Obviously, you are never - EVER required to socially interact with an agent if you don't want to. You must answer the appropriate questions allowed by law at checkpoints and ports of entry, but if you don't wish to converse with the agents socially, don't.
I did not work at a border POE crossing, so I cannot tell you. If you're referring to crossing the border illegally...yes, a full sample of biographical information is collected (including finger prints etc.), and if you have a record it will show up.
No. You do not pay for anything while entering the BP (though you will have to pay for your flight to your duty station, or travel to Artesia, NM for the academy).
Yep.
The overall effect is pretty significant. Mainly from deterrence and detection, as well as monitoring who is entering the country. If you're asking about interior checkpoints they're also pretty good. We used to catch loads of stuff trying to go around the checkpoint. This makes it really easy to catch. So, yes, they're pretty effective at both detection, deterrence and apprehensions. I can't speak for some of the really interior ones on distant highways though. No idea what they catch there.
Not likely. Any charges or convictions of domestic related violence prohibit a person from owning (or carrying) a firearm, which is obviously required for law enforcement.
When applying, DHS/CBP will ask what state you prefer to work in. This is no guarantee. When they make you a job offer they will provide you with a choice of 1-3 different stations, and you may choose which one you prefer. If you prefer to wait this is also possible, but then you lose your slot in line, with no guarantee a slot will open up where you want to work. You're better off joining wherever you can and then working 3-4 years and applying to move later.
It's a complete mixed bag. The job is a lot of hours, a lot of hard work, and can be very depressing when your own country doesn't really care. Some guys love the job. Other guys put up with it. I personally quit because I ended up hating the agency. So, it depends on the person and what you consider important/valuable.
No. The SS card/green card etc. would be recorded as null and void. A simple scan would indicate that the Bosnian citizen is no longer legally entitled to be in the U.S.
This depended on the task, but everyday uniform wear included: Uniform trousers and shirt, soft body armor, duty belt with radio, handcuffs, collapsible steel baton, flashlight, leatherman, pistol, pistol magazines, keepers and occasionally a spare pouch for a gps, and sometimes a medical pouch. In your pockets you'd bring a knife or two, handheld gps, notepads, pens, batteries for all of your stuff. You'd always bring a pair or two of gloves for searching stuff, boots. When out on foot for any length of time you'd take a camelbak with water, some food, etc. If needed a shotgun or M4 carbine was available. You'd end up toting around perhaps 25 lbs. of junk. Not much, but enough that you'd feel it when you took it off at the end of the day.
I have no idea how Mexican citizenship works, and what they consider citizens. Since the children were born in the United States they are U.S. citizens. The United States does not recognize dual citizenship, so as far as our country is concerned they are U.S. citizens. I do not know how Mexico qualifies whether or not a person born abroad is a citizen or not.
Time to get the FBI involved. That's a huge ball of wax, but if you are stating that your husband abducted your children and fled the country you need to start by contacting local Law Enforcement and the FBI. This is an external/international matter.
Again, I can't help you - but only because our checkpoints were all temporary. We did not have any large scale traffic checkpoints (like in Las Cruces) in our area. If they look like radar equipment they could be ground radar systems based around the checkpoints which scan for areas out to each side - detecting people or traffic which is trying to cut around the checkpoint.
Some checkpoints have tractor trailer scanning equipment, which essentially X-Rays the contents of large trailer boxes. I'm not sure. No real experience at a "proper" checkpoint. Talk about a job I'd never want though...I'm really glad we only had a small temporary checkpoint, sometimes.
There are some guys who spend most of their career standing at a traffic checkpoint. Nooooo thanks.
You mean that she's been in Mexico for 13 years, or that she's been in the U.S. for 13 years and recently went back to Mexico and was caught coming in? If she's legally applying for status or citizenship then she's just made a huge mistake. Illegal entries during the application process will negate the application completely and she will be refused entry. If she has been deported, she will have a 5 year ban on legal application, and a subsequent deportation will result in a further ban (I believe it's 10 or 20 years). There is no point in breaking the law while trying to legally do something.
I have no experience with the Canadian border or immigration officers. Can't help you there.
You can be prosecuted for human smuggling...and thus potentially spend a long time in jail.
I'm not sure. This is something you'll have to contact Customs directly, or an agent who has worked POE's. We did not have one in our station's area of responsibility so I never worked in one.
You are not required to have a college degree to join the BP. However, if you do, and achieve a 3.0 or better GPA you will qualify to join at a higher pay grade. If I were you, I'd finish the college degree. That's much more important for your future than just about anything else. It is, however, not required in order for you to join.
I'm not entirely sure what you're referring to. However, a person illegally in the U.S. will forfeit any legal application process, as they have violated the law. You may not enter the U.S. legally until you have all papers (visa, permanent resident etc.) finalized.
This is the easiest way to completely ruin your chances of entering the country legally. Likewise, this will possibly come up in your application process during the background investigation.
I can not give you a direct answer, but it doesn't sound like a good situation.
Well, becoming a K9 handler is pretty tough. If you start out in a normal station, you can expect to wait 4-6 years minimum to get one. If you're at a smaller station and no one else wants to be a K9 handler you may pick one up sooner. You do have to attend some classes, and a selection process. You do not purchase your own dog - it would be issued if you're selected to become a K9 handler. It's a good, very time consuming gig --- but don't expect it right out of the academy. Being a K9 handler is a rather coveted position so it's more often than not given to senior agents.
No, I do not believe there is a limit on the number of times you can take the exam.
Not if you've been deported. If you have a voluntary return, perhaps. I haven't seen it done, but I never worked with the immigration lawyers.
Well, the BORTAC guys work even more, and are subject to callouts, as they are essentially on-call. Any relationship is doable, but a relationship which is weak to start out with, will not survive a LEO career of any sort. Also, if your loved one is in that line of work you should choose your fights carefully. Sometimes a LEO will encounter a bunch of serious messed up stuff (dead children, bodies, abuse, etc.) on duty and then come home only for his/her spouse to get angry over something stupid --- this will ignite a fight, etc. So, yes it's pretty darn tough. But, not impossible by any stretch of the imagination.
That is something which is handled by ICE or DEA. The BP operates some Disrupt teams who work with local LEO's on special tasks like that. It is not under the jurisdiction or a normal BP office though and is handled at Sector level.
There was not much to do on duty to keep your morale high. Off-duty, always just get as far away from work as possible. I moved 40 miles from my station so that on my days off I wasn't seeing anything work-related (short of illegal immigrants all over Phoenix, AZ). The key is to remember it's nothing more than a job. Do your job, come home and carry on with the rest of your life.
Sorry, it's been over 7 years. I have no idea how long we were given (heck I don't even know if the test is still the same!)
We had a lot of guys with tattoos in the BP. Not many guys with full sleeves though. I suppose this wouldn't be a big deal unless the tattoos were of a graphic nature etc. Even then you could theoretically wear the long sleeve duty uniform shirt. I'm not sure, but I do not believe it is a huge deal. It's nowhere near as strict as the military standards for tattoos etc.
You can't study for a reasoning test. It's akin to a common sense test. You either have it, or you don't.
SB1070 passed shortly after I left the BP. The USBP is 100% busy all of the time in Tucson Sector, so if anything it would have put more strain on us, due to a possible increase in local law enforcement apprehending illegals. The actual passage did not affect the way we do business, as our authority is almost entirely immigration based.
I'd imagine there was a spike in OA (other agency) calls, and I'd like to hope that ICE in Phoenix got hammered by Sheriff Joe with more apprehensions.
Not very good. Having an illegal immigrant in the family is a violation because you would be a federal agent with knowledge of someone violating a federal law. This is a question which is covered during your background investigation. This would obviously also call into question your motivation behind applying for the job.
Will there always be a need? Sure. Will that need justify the expense? Unknown. They are good to have, but expensive and time consuming so it's up to the sector if they feel they can justify them.
The BP is not like the military. You may quit whenever you feel like it. Some people get in, and leave within a few months because they don't like it or they found something else. You do not sign a contract or anything of that nature. I'm not entirely sure on the school support. I know a buddy of mine was given a leave of absence to finish his law school classes. The BP did not cover it. You'd have to contact someone with more time in than myself. Perhaps call one of the sector headquarters, or submit a question via the DHS/CBP website.
This has been answered several times before. Contact the Mexican consulate.
The 4th amendment is fine, however there are numerous legal exceptions which apply to a certain radius from all international borders. The 4th amendment is also a constituional amendment which provides rights and guarantees to U.S. citizens, not illegal immigrants.
Contact the consulate of his country.
Criminal records have varying degrees on passport applications. If you have been issued proper legal paperwork, you're good to go. Background checks and criminal checks will not take place at a border checkpoint unless you are acting suspiciously etc.
It can take a long time. An 85 is likely enough to get into the academy. If they're not on a hiring push, or are on a hiring freeze (most agencies were due to the sequester - so it backed everything up). I scored a 92 or something and it took a while for them to call me, and that was during the hiring push. It may take a while.
I'm not entirely sure what you mean by paying for the plane ticket of an OTM. Do you mean paying to expedite the return of an OTM to his/her original country, as opposed to them waiting for the OTM flight? I do not believe so. An OTM who is apprehended is being held in a detention center as they have broken the law.
If you have concerns about a relative or friend who may have been apprehended you will have to contact your consulate, who in turn will contact the U.S. and the immigration services. OTM's are held at a number of federal detention centers and processing centers, where they await the return flight to their country of origin.
I have no idea what impact that will have on his application to the Marines, sorry. That is a question best suited for his recruiting office.
Simple interrogation can break anyone and catch them in a lie.
No idea. That's a customs question, not my line of work. Sorry.
The name sounds familiar, but I'm not sure. If they're the volunteer assistant police to the TO's, then I have no idea. I never saw them working.
No, but the vehicle used will be entered in the system, and you'll be spending a while answering questions if you show up in that vehicle. If you were not particularly detained/apprehended it should not be a problem. Stop hangin' out with criminals.
They go to jail for smuggling illegal immigrants.
This depends on where you are, and what is occurring. Many states and locations have laws preventing people from filming or recording people who are working without their consent. I do not believe it is a felony. However you could not go into a McDonalds and film people against their consent or you'd be asked to leave as its private property. We were often filmed or photographed...I was even cursed by an Indian witch doctor (yep!). Normally it's not illegal. There are certain security precautions though around port-of-entries (legal entry points into the US) where filming and audio recordings are illegal because you could be a terrorist/criminal attempting to analyze security features etc. Just depends where you are.
You can report people to ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) but you'd have to provide a lot of information regarding proof that they are here illegally. Also, if a person crosses the border illegally their "reason" doesn't matter. It is still a crime.
Yep, illegal relationships or family members will eliminate you immediately.
Troll elsewhere.
He would not be able to work for the BP has a temporary Visa holder. Only when he gets full and permanent citizenship could he apply.
Nope. This has been discussed several times before.
Yes, you can in the field. Obviously not in a station or holding area. Most agents tend to use dip in the field though, as cigarette smoke immediately gives away your location. As long as you're not in a government building, you can smoke. I don't believe they'd want you smoking at a POE or other check point location while working with people though. In the desert, patrolling? Sure.
No. As with all federal agencies the USBP "Use of Force" policy is very strict and is solely based around defending the agent and other innocent people. Almost every other country in the world is different. Entering almost any other country can get you shot for simply entering illegally.
Nope.
No idea. You'd have to speak to a customs guy. I'm sure there are certain regulations in place regarding the importation of corpses.
If I had to make an educated guess in our AOR when I was working, perhaps 30% or so were actually apprehended. That doesn't count people who are caught later or further in the country (which is exceedingly rare). We'd catch about 75% of the people we detected, spotted or picked up on radar etc. However there are loads of groups/people/drugs that we never detected (but would find signs of later).
Nope. He will be deported.
No.
You can be prosecuted for smuggling illegal aliens.
Nope.
This varies completely from vehicle to vehicle, station to station, and sector to sector. While an agent may not have direct access to X, Y or Z...he is always in radio contact with the station and sector, so information is readily available.
This depends entirely on the nature of his apprehension and whether he was returned voluntarily, deported, if he served any jail time, has a prior criminal record etc. If you're going through paperwork make sure to contact a qualified immigration lawyer to assist you.
Not unless it is on your property and your state laws allow you to do so. Certain states will allow you to shoot someone invading your home property if you feel threatened. Most will not. This is why you see a large number of Americans being forced from their homes along the border, because the immigrants/cartels have made it impossible to stay there or live there safely.
I do not believe there is a limit. Please call the hiring office in Minnesota (should be listed on your paperwork) to confirm if there is a limit.
Wait for him to contact someone. Oh, and get new friends.
Yes, because she has tried to enter illegally (even worse with false documents) she can now not apply to enter the US legally for either 5 or 10 years (depending on which one they selected and how many times she was caught). If she's caught she will be deported again. If she is caught several times, she will be placed in jail. The child is inconsequential.
This depends entirely on the situation. You accomplish both: tend to the injured and apprehend those it's possible to apprehend.
Yes.
Not sure, most parts of the border are not marked (as you noted). However, international law is international law and depends solely on the violated state's policies. If Mexico has strict border policies (which are obviously not enforced at all given the current state of thins) a border patrol agent would be at their mercy. I do imagine if it was an honest mistake, it might be resolved between governments. Once a person enters another country illegally they are solely at the mercy of the country they entered (regardless of LEO affiliation etc.).
Yes, the BP have a couple of different special teams which operate in various sectors. These are run by sector level and often with fellow law enforcement agencies (both local and federal). Not very often, but yes.
No. His record and prints will still be in the U.S. immigration system database.
He could be. Depends on his criminal record and other issues he may have had.
Yes. You will not be able to join the Patrol as you have illegal family members.
Yes, look up 1811 or CBP agent on USAJobs.gov (the US federal job site). There may be no listing currently (there is only a listing when the BP needs new agents).
There is no process. You can contact the local Sheriff/Police Department and attempt to file a missing person's report. However if you can not verify that the family member did cross the border they may not accept the report. Crossing international borders is dangerous and illegal. A person is responsible for their own actions and safety.
Most other countries have severly strict laws regarding border breaches. In fact, many countries retain the right to shoot you. America has some of the softest immigration/border policies in the world (which is why we have this problem).
Crossing the border legally? No. Illegally? Absolutely.
False. The BP will apprehend an individual illegally in the country, regardless of medical conditions or injuries. An agent will be assigned to watch the apprehended individual throughout their medical stay at the hospital. An illegal immigrant may be processed at the hospital and can then be turned over to a medical facility in Mexico as a standard VR (voluntary return).
You do understand that nearly 65% of the 18,000 Border Patrol Agents are of hispanic background? Legal U.S. citizens. This is why they're in the BP, to prevent illegals from abusing the system they spent years and money properly going through to become citizens themselves.
A vehicle used for illegal trafficking of persons or narcotics will be seized, regardless of the owner's position. This vehicle will then be sold at a government auction or destroyed.
Legally? Yes. Not smart, but you can.
Yes. You would immediately be removed from the application process.
No.
Look up your local I.C.E or CBP station and contact them for further guidance.
Yes. It is illegal for any person, citizen or not, to enter the United States without going through a designated port of entry (be it land border, airport, or seaport).
The Border Patrol would contact local police in both Mexico and the United States and they would jointly investigate the scene and determine who would take possession of the body, etc.
Sure, this does happen on occasion. Sometimes knowingly and sometimes unknowingly. There was an agent at my station (my class actually) who was dating a Mexican citizen who was here on a visa. Unbeknownst to the agent the visa had expired. The Mexican actually became abusive and during an investigation by local police - this was revealed. The agent resigned immediately.
If you cannot gain the information from USAJobs.gov (government jobs website) he can try to contact a BP station and inquire there. Most stations have community relations agents which can assist in applying for the job.
Nope.
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