Rancher sees benefit from a fence
By Jonathon Shacat
Herald/Review
Published on Sunday, November 04, 2007

BISBEE — Richard Hodges was driving his Jeep along International Road after 8 p.m. one night this past summer when he noticed an opening in the barbed wire fence along one side of his property.

He owns 372 acres near Bisbee Junction. The edge of his land is located on the border with Mexico. Fearing his cows might escape and cross the border, he stopped to close the hole in the fence.

Richard Hodges points to a place where suspected drug runners are illegally crossing from Mexico to the United States and passing through his property near Bisbee Junction. (Jonathon Shacat•Herald/Review) He parked his vehicle so the headlights were shining on the fence. As he was mending the section of barbed wire, he was struck in the chest by a rock. He turned to step out of the way of the lights and he felt another rock whiz by his head.

He walked around to get in his Jeep and he heard rocks rain down on the canvas top of his Jeep. He went home.

Hodges suspects the people who were throwing the rocks are drug runners.

“They wanted me to leave so they could conduct their illegal business,â€