http://www.dailybulletin.com/news/ci_3470290

Border Patrol, local authorities work together when needed

By Sara A. Carter, Wendy Leung and Mason Stockstill, Staff Writers
Inland Valley Daily Bulletin

When Border Patrol agents spot a group of potential drug smugglers or rogue Mexican troops crossing the border, they usually call for backup.
That call can be to their headquarters, or to the police or sheriff's department, depending on the situation. While there are lines of authority dividing local, state and federal law enforcement agencies, what matters in an urgent situation is stopping the threat.

"For the agent dealing with multiple passengers, a narcotics load, or smugglers with weapons, the last thing you are going to do is not call for backup," said Sal Zamora, a spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. "It doesn't matter what law enforcement agency comes to a border agent's aid when it's a matter of serious danger."

As many officials at different levels of law enforcement complain of poor communication among the various agencies working the border, the issue of how the forces in the field work together gains pressing urgency.

Most of those interviewed said the partnerships established by the Border Patrol and local police and sheriff's departments work well in terms of responding to calls for assistance.

"If our units were engaged at the border, we'd call for assistance to anybody within the area who would respond," said Lt. George Moreno of the Imperial County Sheriff's Department in southeast California. "Everybody at local and federal levels would be called out."

That's not unusual, Zamora said. The Border Patrol's mission is such that it often makes as much sense for them to do regular police work as it does to chase border-crossers.

"In many cases we are the first to respond to accidents on the freeway," Zamora said. "We play more of a police or first-responder role when needed." Along the northern U.S. border, the rugged and vast terrain -- and the relatively smaller number of Border Patrol officers on patrol -- demands that the agency work more closely with other departments. Zamora said agents there monitor local police radios regularly.

"There are so many desolate mountainous areas that are challenging to patrol," he said. "'In fact, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police assists the U.S. Border Patrol as well on many occasions." Similarly, border agents along the Great Lakes will call the U.S. Coast Guard for assistance, Zamora added.

At the southern border, the geography and staffing situations are far different, but the same rules apply.

Zamora said that border patrol agents have always looked at border enforcement as a shared effort between all law enforcement agencies -- though each agency has its own separate role to play, he added.

"If a vehicle has fled a checkpoint, or it's involved in a hit-and-run, it poses a danger to the local community," he said. "In that case, it could involve several law enforcement agencies to handle the incident."

But some local police and sheriff's departments say they're not equipped to deal with the kind of violence and crime that drug smugglers bring with them across the border. Small towns such as Laredo, Texas, have become virtual war zones as drug cartels and the military deserters who work for them have set up shop in recent years.

Chief Clare May, of the Columbus Police Department in New Mexico, said his tiny border outpost is overwhelmed at times, particularly since Columbus is the only 24-hour international port in the state.

"There's an increase in crime and activity, but we have a reduction in budget," he said. "I don't have money to pay overtime wages."

May's budget is so small he takes donations from U.S. Customs and other police departments for furniture and office supplies.

He also doesn't have access to the National Crime Information Center, an FBI database that law enforcement agencies around the country use to track suspects across multiple jurisdictions.

It's obstacles like those that officials from local police and sheriff's departments said are keeping them from addressing drug smuggling and other border violence as well as they could. The issue of firepower is particularly pressing, said Sheriff Leo Samaniego of El Paso County in Texas.

"We just don't have the same type of weapons," he said. "We use a great deal of restraint. But on the other side you have all these gangsters."

Zamora acknowledged the Border Patrol faces challenges with funding and equipment as well, but noted the department plans to beef up its ranks by more than 1,000 officers by year's end.

Besides, he said, different law enforcement agencies have always helped each other out, and the practice will continue regardless of any one department's funding levels.

"There is a strong brotherhood within all law enforcement, and we try to be there when we're needed," Zamora said.

Sara A. Carter can be reached at (909) 483-8552 or by e-mail at sara.carter@dailybulletin.com .

Wendy Leung can be reached at (909) 483-9376 or by e-mail at wendy.leung@dailybulletin.com .

Mason Stockstill can be reached by e-mail at mason.stockstill@dailybulletin.com , or by phone at (909) 483-9354.