Border Patrol Reports Decline In Its Use Of Force

The same year, Yuma Sector checkpoint arrests of US citizens “exceeded those of non-citizens by a factor of almost eight (and in 2011, by a factor of 11):” The report summarizes scores of civil rights complaints submitted to (the Department of Homeland Security) oversight agencies that do not appear to have been properly investigated, including:A Border Patrol agent in Green Valley, Ariz., followed a store employee into a parking lot, approached the individual with a service revolver drawn, ordered him to his knees, and handcuffed him.

Shawn Moran, spokesman for the union that represents Border Patrol agents, said he didn’t know why the numbers fell but that it may be because agents are second-guessing themselves, even when force is justified. The Times notes that CBP reports to Congress in fiscal year 2012 mentioned “three complaints accusing agents of violating the Fourth Amendment”.

“We believe it’s more politics and a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist”, said Moran, of the National Border Patrol Council.

James Lyall, an A.C.L.U. lawyer dedicated to the border, said the records not only confirmed the types of stories his office regularly heard from border residents, but also suggested that Customs and Border Protection had underreported the number of civil rights complaints it had received.

Under current policy, agents can use deadly force if they have a reasonable belief that their lives or the lives of others are in danger.

These and many other incidents described in the complaints occurred not at the border but at internal checkpoints that are ostensibly aimed at enforcing immigration laws but more often seem to facilitate drug searches.

CBP said it has revamped training, launched new case review practices and focused on being more transparent.

In raw data terms, agents used force 1,037 times in FY 2014 and 768 times in FY 2015.

Use of force can include a physical restraint, the use of an alternative device, or the application of lethal force, the agency said.

Mitra Ebodalahi, Border Litigation Project attorney, ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties, said the public release of data was encouraging but did not paint the entire picture because of incomplete statistics. So far, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials have refused.