Battle for the Border: Federal Spillover Definition

krgv.com
Reported by: Erica Proffer
Last Update: 3:30 am

WESLACO - Threats along our border may be ignored by Washington. The top security leaders deny the Valley is at risk.

Bullets flying over the Rio Grande, drug traffickers targeting law enforcement, a cartel battle carried out on the streets of McAllen. The federal government says Mexico's drug war is Mexico's problem, they say it's not in the U.S. yet.

Report after report, CHANNEL 5 NEWS shows you drug violence carried out on Valley streets, making it's way to the streets of Austin, Houston, and Dallas.

CHANNEL 5 NEWS asked the top homeland security official.

"We have more manpower and technology at the border. We are picking up more drugs that are coming from Central America and Mexico," says Janet Napolitano.

Border Patrol agents seized a record amount of drugs in the last year. Immigrations and customs enforcement processed and deported more illegal aliens, yet the Federal Bureau of Investigation crime numbers are down.

They're down here and all across the southwest border. CHANNEL 5 NEWS wanted to know why so we took a closer look.

We found out why federal leaders can't say spillover violence is here because of a congressional report that tries to measure spillover violence.

It's an impossible task because no definition of spillover exists on a federal level.

The Department of Homeland Security and others use the FBI Uniform Crime Report to begin measuring spillover.

The report labels violent crimes as murder, manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery and aggravated assault.

It doesn't include the crime CHANNEL 5 NEWS has shown you.

The FBI doesn't list kidnappings like the ones foiled here in the city of Hidalgo.

The attempted kidnapping that led to a Hidalgo County Deputy being shot won't be listed either.

Extortions like the one police say went on in a Mission stash house aren't listed.

Smuggling, and the police chases they bring with them aren't reported to the FBI either.

None of the crimes will go into the FBI's books, won't make their way into the uniformed crime report.

One hundred law enforcement officers responded to the river banks in Starr county to respond to armed drug traffickers.

A man found on the American banks of the Rio Grande was shot three times.

This case will be listed as an illegal immigrant crossing, it will not become part of the uniformed crime report.

Has the federal government turned a blind eye to the crimes?

The enormous seizures of cartel linked drugs don't qualify as spillover to the government no matter how many drugs stack up in a Drug Enforcement Agency warehouse.

Weapons and bulk cash leaving the U.S. headed to Mexico aren't in the federal crime report.

People like Judge Abel Limas and former representative Jim Solis who were caught working with drug runners aren't considered an American part of the Mexican drug war.

Neither are dozens of law enforcement officers who were arrested.

Cartel related gang activity is recorded federally, but the government says it doesn't prove Mexico's drug war is here.

This is how the DEA defines spillover, "Spillover violence entails deliberate, planned attacks by the cartels on U.S. assets,

including civilian, military, or law enforcement officials, innocent U.S. citizens, or physical institutions such as government buildings, consulates, or businesses. This definition does not include trafficker on trafficker violence, whether perpetrated in Mexico or the U.S."

It's a picture our country's leaders only see in black and white. Crime unknown by the federal government won't be counted by the federal government. That allows them to tell you there is no record of spillover and be accurate.

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