Bogged down at the border
By Jonathan Clark
Published Friday, March 19, 2010 10:00 AM MDT

The line, more than 200 people deep, stretched back from the Dennis DeConcini pedestrian border crossing, winding through an open-air corridor and out into the narrow lanes of pharmacies, dental offices and curio shops of downtown Nogales, Sonora.


U.S. Customs and Border Protection sometimes has only one agent manning the port’s pedestrian turnstiles, even on weekends. Photos / Jonathan Clark

As the sun set on the barely moving queue, a pre-teen girl waiting with her family shifted back and forth on flip-flop-clad feet in an effort to keep warm. A few steps away, a well-groomed, 30-something man took out a cell phone and dialed his girlfriend on the Arizona side of the border, assuring her that he’d be across soon for their Saturday night date.

“What’s the holdup?â€