Thread: AZ: A new Border Patrol checkpoint delay on I-19

A new Border Patrol checkpoint delay on I-19
Interim facility pushed back 10 months
By Brady McCombs
Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 07.14.2009

The Border Patrol's $1.5 million interim checkpoint facility planned for Interstate 19 has been delayed again — this time by 10 months.
The Internal Audit division of the agency's parent organization, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, informed Border Patrol officials about two weeks ago that they need to review the structural soundness and security of the proposed facility, said Alan White, Border Patrol Nogales station chief.
"Frankly, nobody knew they would be applying permanent design guide standards to an interim facility," said White, explaining the delay.
The interim facility plans call for a modular building, a third paved lane for semitrailers, a paved and expanded area for secondary inspection, and a canopy that will cover the three lanes and secondary inspection area.
The 40-week delay is the latest setback for an agency that has been trying to move forward with plans for an interim, and eventually permanent, I-19 checkpoint for more than 2 1/2 years.
In November, officials said they expected to finish the interim facility by early April. In May, officials were still hopeful it would be completed by the end of summer. This latest delay means the facility won't be finished until around May 2010.
The Tucson Sector — the busiest on the Southwest border for apprehensions and marijuana seizures — is the only one of nine sectors without a permanent checkpoint. Border Patrol officials say they need the facility to help slow the flow of people and drugs.
There has been staunch opposition to a permanent checkpoint among residents in the I-19 corridor. Opponents question the effectiveness of the stationary checkpoints, since there is no element of surprise, and worry that the strategy pushes smuggling activity into their neighborhoods.
The two sides of the argument will be on display this week in a pair of public forums in Tubac and Green Valley.
On Wednesday morning in Tubac, White and John Fitzpatrick, Border Patrol Tucson Sector division chief, are scheduled to speak before the Tubac Chamber of Commerce. They are expected to provide an update on the progress of the facility and address the importance of the permanent inspection stations.
On Thursday afternoon in Green Valley, the American Civil Liberties Union is sponsoring a forum about the civil liberties implications of checkpoints. Scheduled speakers include Alessandra Soler Meetze and Victoria Lopez of the ACLU of Arizona and Margo Cowan, a Pima County public defender and immigrants rights activist.
ACLU officials planned the forum to allow Southern Arizonans to discuss how the checkpoint has impacted their civil liberties, said Soler Meetze. Her office has been receiving increased complaints from area residents about actions of Border Patrol agents, she said.
The Border Patrol has been operating a makeshift fixed checkpoint under an overpass at Kilometer 42 north of Tubac since November 2006. The retirement of former Rep. Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., paved the way for the Border Patrol to begin operating fixed checkpoints.
Kolbe championed congressionally mandated measures that withheld funding for permanent inspection stations and required that the stations be moved every seven or 14 days.
New language inserted by Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., dictates that Border Patrol officials can't finalize plans for a permanent facility until the interim checkpoint has been put up and a Government Accountability Office evaluation of permanent checkpoints has been completed.
The expected release of that report has also been pushed back to late August, said Rich Stana, director of homeland security issues at the GAO.

http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/300808

MOre kissing up to the COCs

Dixie

I guarantee you, if you look deep enough you will find Janet's finger in here. She effectively puts a stop to anything that will enforce our laws. Period. She lives and breathes to stop law enforcement.

Originally Posted by laughinglynx

I guarantee you, if you look deep enough you will find Janet's finger in here. She effectively puts a stop to anything that will enforce our laws. Period. She lives and breathes to stop law enforcement.

She is proving to be one of the illegals best friends!