Thread: 'Operation Stonegarden' Border Support to Continue in 2009

C.B.P. News Release

Successful 'Operation Stonegarden' Border Support to Continue in 2009

(Friday, January 16, 2009)

Washington – The Department of Homeland Security has announced $60 million in funding for fiscal year 2009 for Operation Stonegarden. This initiative gives state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies additional funding to strengthen America’s borders. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Border Patrol has primary responsibility for coordination of the successful initiative, which has resulted in increased safety and security in border communities.

Started in 2004, Operation Stonegarden made funds available to more than 200 agencies in areas adjacent to either the Canadian or Mexican borders to enhance their border security operations. Funds were used to support overtime, per diem costs and to purchase equipment such as night vision technology and observation equipment to enhance security operations on the border in areas in proximity to Border Patrol operations. Participation in the program does not give agencies immigration enforcement authority, but allows them to enhance their traditional law enforcement missions

Operation Stonegarden enhances border security through increased patrol activities of state, local, and tribal law enforcement in areas along the border that are vulnerable to the entry of terrorists and terrorist weapons, or in corridors known for human and narcotics smuggling.

During fiscal year 2009, eligibility for a grant from the $60 million allocated for Operation Stonegarden is not restricted to law enforcement agencies in areas near the land borders with Canada and Mexico, but includes any state, local or tribal agency with a tie to an international boundary, including coastal areas. Operation Stonegarden will continue to support U.S. border states and territories in increasing their capability to prevent, protect against, and respond to border security issues. Another benefit of Operation Stonegarden is increased coordination and collaboration among federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies.

Operation Stonegarden grant awards are competitive. Applications are reviewed by a panel of federal representatives, and award amounts are determined by risk assessments and the applicant’s operational needs as addressed by the application criteria DHS announces the final award amounts to state and local border county, or equivalent local unit of government.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.

Contacts For This News Release

CBP Public Affairs Office
Phone: (202) 344-1500

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/new ... 2009_4.xml

Stonegarden program targets border crimes

February 1, 2009 - 10:36 PM
By Jared Taylor/The Monitor
EDINBURG - A murder in the Lopezville neighborhood last week highlights how deputies are putting a federal grant to work, Sheriff Lupe Treviño said.



Investigators believe the murder of undocumented Mexican national Jose Ortega came at the hands of at least one other undocumented immigrant, the sheriff said.



Deputies have made no arrests and the identity of the man investigators believe fatally shot the 25-year-old Ortega late Tuesday night remains undisclosed. But Treviño said the slaying likely was gang-related and is the type of crime the sheriff's office has devoted more resources toward as part of Operation Stonegarden.



"We're going to redirect our Stonegarden people in a particular part of the county looking for him and also concentrating on his associates," Treviño said.



The Stonegarden program was designed to bolster local law enforcement efforts against border crimes such as human trafficking and drug smuggling. The goals outlined in the sheriff's office operational plan for Stonegarden include surveillance and patrol operations to gather intelligence related to those crimes.



Treviño said deputies would not specifically enforce federal immigration laws - just state offenses.



"We are not going to involve ourselves in any immigration enforcement," he said. "If we pull someone over for a traffic stop and he's an illegal immigrant, we will only take care of the traffic offense."



But any undocumented nationals arrested and booked at the jail on other charges are turned over to federal authorities, the sheriff said.



With extra patrols, the sheriff said he hopes to pick up wanted criminals in the act of relatively petty offenses - and have the deputies act as an overall crime deterrent. "When you see a cop, most criminals will not commit a crime," he said.



Awarded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security last month, the $1.6 million grant primarily gives the sheriff's office funds to pay deputies overtime to perform extra patrols in troublesome colonias across the county.



Treviño said that about 25 percent of the inmates at the Hidalgo County Jail - which houses about 1,200 inmates - lack proper immigration documentation.



"That is a very substantial number," he said. "We do have a problem with the criminal illegal immigrant."

http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/s ... grant.html