Thread: TX - Border Patrol sending 100 new agents to the Valley

Posted: 04.03.2014 at 1:40 PM



MCALLEN, TEXAS (AP) -- The U.S. Border Patrol has shifted more than 100 agents from California and Arizona to the southernmost tip of Texas, its busiest sector for illegal immigration.

The agency announced Wednesday that the temporarily assigned agents had arrived to the Rio Grande Valley this week.

While arrests of immigrants entering the country illegally have stabilized or fallen at other parts of the Southwest border, they've soared in South Texas.

Last year, the Border Patrol made more than 154,000 arrests in the sector, an increase of 58 percent from the previous year.

The sector has already made more than 95,000 arrests midway through this fiscal year and seized more than 300,000 pounds of marijuana.

The agents from Arizona and California join those already sent from the neighboring Laredo sector.

http://www.valleycentral.com/news/st...6#.Uz3hsVfisdw

by Logan Churchwell 8 Apr 2014, 9:40 AM PDT
breitbart.com



The United States Border Patrol recently announced mass reassignments and post-academy deployments to the south Texas region of the U.S./Mexico border amid spikes in arrests. Though the action is considered long overdue, leading border security experts have praised the move.

Breitbart Texas’ Contributing Editor and author of the upcoming book, Border Insecurity, celebrated the move despite its poor timing.

“It's unfortunate that it took so long for DHS to realize that Border Patrol needed reinforcements in the Rio Grande Valley, but I'm very happy to see the agency taking a risk-based approach to resource allocation,” Longmire said.

Arguing that such tactics to focus manpower on active threats should become “the rule rather than the exception,” Longmire contends that such moves are “a big step in the direction of developing a comprehensive border security strategy that bases resource allocation on regional threats.”

According to the Associated Press, roughly 100 agents have been transferred from the California and Arizona campaigns to the Rio Grande Valley sector to alleviate demand for more personnel. According to the federal disclosure, recent graduates from agency training are likely to serve first tours as part of the south Texas effort as well.

Roughly 3,100 agents serve in south Texas—nearly a 1,000 fewer than seen in the Tucson sector. Despite the substantially reduced force level, Texas led the border efforts with 154,000 arrests in the previous fiscal year. The Rio Grande sector’s arrest rate spiked 54 percent compared to the year prior. Year-to-date, 300,000 pounds of marijuana have already been seized.

Despite the personnel reinforcements, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been forced into cost-cutting measures that could likely blunt the progress made by fresh border agents. Breitbart Texas recently reported that ICE officials announced a new policy in south Texas to release “low threat” illegal immigrants into the United States pending future immigration and deportation hearings.

Federal immigration agents report reduced or plateauing rates of illegal immigrant incarcerations in conjunction with the mass transfers of agents from California to Texas. A recent California law passed to block local law enforcement from notifying federal agents of incarcerated aliens with few exceptions may demand a reversal in border assignments in the near future, however.

http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-T...to-South-Texas

RELATED

http://www.alipac.us/f12/customs-bor...ficers-300543/

4/1/2014

Posted: Sunday, April 13, 2014 11:38 pm

A sudden influx of U.S. Border Patrol agents — as well as a new sector chief — for our region brings optimism and concerns.

We’re hopeful these 100 newly transferred agents to the Rio Grande Valley Sector will safeguard our borders, as expected. We’re concerned, however, that the new agents are hastily being put into position. And we trust that the new leadership will ensure they are properly trained and understand the dynamics and culture of our region.

Border Patrol Agent Raul Ortiz, former acting chief of the sector, told media in Edinburg last week that the agents — who were brought from San Diego, Tucson and El Paso sectors — are experienced. Their mission is to intercept the rising numbers of immigrants moving illegally through South Texas, as well as stop human trafficking, drug smuggling and organized crime.

“These groups victimize immigrants,” Ortiz said. “That is why we are working to combat these groups. Our agency protects the welfare of all individuals regardless of nationality.”

That’s an honorable mission; however, past experiences have shown that sometimes zealous agents can get overly aggressive in pursuits or arrests and that can put the general public at risk.

More safeguards need to be in place, especially as agents struggle to keep up with skyrocketing apprehensions here. Year-to-date data for 2014 shows more than 95,000 apprehensions already in the Rio Grande Valley Sector. In 2013, there were 154,000 arrests, The Monitor’s Ildefonso Ortiz reported.

As U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-El Paso, and Steve Pearce, R-N.M., advocate in recently proposed legislation that calls for more oversight, checks and balances are indeed needed to bring accountability within the federal government’s growing $18 billion per year border enforcement functions.

“Our offices receive frequent reports from constituents regarding mistreatment at the border. Yet, there is no coherent complaint process. We also represent thousands of CBP agents and officers who need the support and training to be safe and do their jobs effectively,” O’Rourke said in announcing the legislation March 26. The lawmakers want:

— Creation of an independent Border Oversight Commission to examine and make recommendations on CBP’s use of force, search and seizure, personnel training and community engagement policies.

— An ombudsman within DHS to represent the interests of the public by investigating and addressing border complaints or violations of an individual’s rights.

— Border community liaison offices along the northern and southern border regions to foster greater coordination between border communities and CBP.

— Enhanced training and education for border agents.

— Enacting new transparency measures though mandatory and stringent reporting requirements regarding use of force, migrant deaths and protection of civil liberties.

— Tracking of migrant deaths along the border and recommendations for preventing deaths.

We endorse each of these worthy proposals that could help agents and citizens living on our nation’s borders, such as the Rio Grande Valley.

On Monday, Kevin W. Oaks took over as U.S. Border Patrol chief patrol agent for the Rio Grande Valley Sector. He replaced retiring agent Rosendo Hinojosa. We welcome Oaks, a 29-year veteran with the Border Patrol, to our region and wish him well in management of the 3,000 sector agents in nine region stations that includes 34 counties and 34,000 square miles and 316 river miles with Mexico. We have faith that he will get to really know our region and will do his best to guide these new agents to treat our community and its citizens with the respect we all deserve.

http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/opi...7a43b2370.html