Safety concerns increasing at the Texas-Mexico border

Posted: Sep 16, 2014 4:18 AM PST Updated: Sep 16, 2014 10:25 AM PST

Brownsville, TX - Officials report that increased numbers of militia members are showing up along the Texas-Mexico border.

The border patrol says the growing number of militia members is an increasing concern for them. A new website called 'Patriots Information Hotline' says there are about 16 militias along the border in Texas and they are encouraging more to come.

Militias have flocked to the Rio Grande Valley to help secure the border and many plan to participate in the September 20th protest to shutdown ports of entry, but agents say militias complicate law enforcement efforts.

Right now, the National Guard, hundreds of state troopers and 3,600 border patrol agents are all patrolling the border in the valley and they say adding groups that are not connected could be dangerous.

In August, an agent was pursuing a group of immigrants in the Brownsville area when he came across a man holding a rifle. The agent fired shots at the man who was later identified as a militia member. That man was not injured, but agents said this situation could have ended a lot worse.

Agents also go through weeks of training to understand immigration laws and say that people who are not trained on those standards could violate someone's civil rights and open themselves up for a civil lawsuit.

That very reason is why the border patrol stand by their message of leaving border security to them.

http://www.newschannel10.com/story/2...-mexico-border