Border Patrol a Challenge For License Reviews

By Deborah Baker / Journal Staff Writeron
Jul 28, 2011

SANTA FE — Foreign nationals from around the state are being summoned to Albuquerque for a check of their New Mexico driver’s license documents, but roadblocks might confront some drivers from the south: namely, U.S. Border Patrol checkpoints.

Las Cruces-area drivers, for instance, who are in the United States illegally but who have legally obtained New Mexico licenses, might not be able to clear southern checkpoints to head north to Albuquerque.

The roads leading from the Las Cruces area to the interior of New Mexico have five checkpoints, including one on Interstate 25 about 25 miles north of the border, according to the Border Patrol.

Their primary mission is checking citizenship, and they’re also looking for drugs, according to Doug Mosier, a spokesman in the Border Patrol’s El Paso Sector office.

Agents question vehicle occupants about citizenship and can demand proof, such as a passport or visa. A driver’s license is not considered proof of citizenship, he said.

“If you’re here illegally, you don’t get through the checkpoint, and that’s the bottom line,â€