Thread: BP agents in clear? DHS refuses to deliver documents

http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_5109415

Border agents in the clear?
Congressmen's requests for files spurned by DHS
Sara A. Carter, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 01/29/2007 12:00:00 AM PST

The Department of Homeland Security's assertions that two El Paso Border Patrol agents knowingly shot an unarmed suspect appear to be countered by the department's own documents, The Sun's sister newspaper, the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin of Ontario, has learned.

Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said Wednesday that Homeland Security Inspector General Richard Skinner has refused to deliver documents confirming his office's claims that Border Patrol agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean admitted they "were out to shoot Mexicans," and knowingly shot Osbaldo Aldrete-Davila, a drug smuggler, in a border incident nearly two years ago.

McCaul and three other House members met with Skinner in September to discuss the agents'
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The Daily Bulletin obtained a confidential Office of Inspector General memo detailing an interview Compean gave to investigators on March 18, 2005.

The memo, dated April 4, 2005, supports the agent's claim that he believed his life was in danger when he tried to apprehend the Mexican drug smuggler on Feb. 17, 2005.

Special Agent Christopher Sanchez of the Inspector General's Office said in the memo that Compean believed Aldrete-Davila was carrying a weapon when Compean fired at him. Sanchez was the main DHS investigator on the case.

"Compean said that Aldrete- Davila continued to look back over his shoulder towards Compean as Aldrete-Davila ran away from him," Sanchez wrote. "Compean said that he began to shoot at Aldrete- Davila because of the shiny object he thought he saw in Aldrete-Davila's left hand ... Compean explained that he thought that the shiny object might be a gun and that Aldrete-Davila was going to shoot him because he kept looking back at him as he ran away... ."

According to McCaul and the other congressmen who met with Skinner - Texas Republican Reps. John Culberson, Kenny Marchant and Ted Poe - the Inspector General told them during their meeting last fall that Ramos and Compean had confessed to knowingly shooting at an unarmed suspect.

The Daily Bulletin made five phone calls for comment to the Office of Inspector General on Thursday and left the same number of messages again on Friday. The calls were not returned.

"According to the inspector general, they had evidence that the agents said they were out to shoot Mexicans," Poe said. "I found that hard to believe and asked if I could see that evidence. They never gave us what was promised."

McCaul, a former federal prosecutor in Texas, said the Inspector General's Office has refused to provide any evidence thus far to support its claims.

He and his colleagues are now demanding that Skinner turn over documents related to the case or face a subpoena or contempt of Congress.

"I want to weigh the facts and the evidence in this case," McCaul said. "Either it is total arrogance or gross incompetence on the part of the Inspector General's Office. If what (the DHS) told us was a lie, or if they misrepresented the facts on this case to members of Congress, we are going to hold them accountable."

Full transcripts from Ramos and Compean's trial last spring still have not been made available to Congress or the public. According to McCaul, repeated requests for the transcripts since November have been answered with excuses.

Ramos and Compean shot Aldrete-Davila in February 2005, after a foot chase along the Texas-Mexico border. Aldrete-Davila, who was struck in the buttocks, had fled a van the agents were pursuing. The van later turned out to be holding more than 700 pounds of marijuana. The smuggler was given immunity by the U.S. Attorney's office and full medical treatment for his injuries to testify against the agents.

The agents were convicted in March of several charges related to the shooting, notably assault with a deadly weapon. Ramos received an 11-year prison sentence, Compean 12 years.

Aldrete-Davila is suing the U.S. Border Patrol for $5 million for his injuries.

Ramos said he testified during the trial that he saw Aldrete-Davila with something "shiny" in his hand, and said he thought it was a gun.

According to the memorandum, seven other agents were on the scene at the time of the shooting, including two supervisors who Ramos and Compean both said knew about the incident.

No other agents at the scene that day were prosecuted, and some were given immunity to testify against Ramos and Compean.

Agents and supervisors are required to file a written report if they participate in or know of an incident, according to TJ Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council, which represents nearly 11,000 Border Patrol agents.

"The steadfast refusal of the departments of Justice and Homeland Security to provide relevant information to Congress and the public about why Border Patrol agents Compean and Ramos were prosecuted causes people to wonder what they are trying to hide," Bonner said.

"The steadfast refusal of the departments of Justice and Homeland Security to provide relevant information to Congress and the public about why Border Patrol agents Compean and Ramos were prosecuted causes people to wonder what they are trying to hide," Bonner said.

I agree. This entire story has stunk from the beginning.

Heard Sara Carter on the John and Ken show tonight discussing this also. She's doing her best to report the story. She even said if there is proof that the agents said they were out to shoot Mexicans she'd report it. But so far no proof. And why would these agents says that anyway when they are Mexican?

Calls not returned and requests for documents ignored. If everything was on the up and up they would be more cooperative.

I agree they are hiding the truth and trying to baffle us with BS. I am just glad that there are those who will not give up until the truth is uncovered.