Posted on 03/21/2003 9:14:39 AM PST by Technoman
HEBBRONVILLE, Texas – A pair of Ranch Rescue volunteers arrested here Wednesday are facing two felony charges each, Texas Department of Public Safety officials say.
As WorldNetDaily reported yesterday, Casey Nethercutt of California and Hank Conner of Louisiana were arrested by Texas Ranger Sgt. Doyle Holdridge and charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a weapon and two counts of unlawful restraint for allegedly pistol-whipping and detaining a Salvadoran man and his wife early Wednesday morning.
Nethercutt and Conner were part of a four-man detachment from Ranch Rescue – a property-rights activist group – which was led by Texas chapter head and national spokesman Jack Foote. The four-man contingent, at the request of rancher Joe Sutton, was here to prevent criminal trespassers from crossing Sutton's property.
Law enforcement and other sources say the men are being held in a detention facility in nearby Falfurrias. Officials said yesterday that bond for each man had been set at $200,000. The men were expected to be arraigned in Hebbronville this morning.
Holdridge told WorldNetDaily that the Salvadoran couple – a man and woman described as being in their mid-20s, but whose names have not yet been released – bore some visible physical signs of injury. After Nethercutt and Conner were apprehended, the Salvadoran couple picked the men out of a photo array, said the arresting officer.
Foote said the charges are bogus. He said he and his team "never touched" the couple, "except to pat them down and search them for weapons" after discovering them lying down in brush early Wednesday morning around 1 a.m. He says he has pictures to prove it, although they weren't available at publication time.
After Nethercutt and Conner searched the two Salvadorans, said Foote, they "were taken by van" to the front of Sutton's property, which is guarded by a heavy, steel, sliding gate that remains locked along Hwy. 16.
In the interim, said Foote, the U.S. Border Patrol – which mans an inspection station about seven miles north of Sutton's ranch – was notified to come pick up the Salvadorans. But after waiting around 45 minutes, Sutton grew impatient and ordered his detachment to simply open the front gate and release the Salvadoran couple, said Foote.
The Border Patrol arrived about 10 minutes later, said Foote. Sources told WND the Salvadoran couple eventually turned themselves in to Border Patrol officers, but agency officials would not confirm that.
Border Patrol spokesmen in Hebbronville and Laredo had no comment, except to say the case was being handled by Texas authorities.
It was unclear how the Salvadorans' testimony was obtained; neither Holdridge nor Jim Hogg County Sheriff's Department officials would say. Holdridge did say Wednesday, however, that the Salvadoran couple did not swear out a complaint.
"I filed charges on behalf of the state of Texas," he told WND.
In addition to legal problems, Nethercutt, who is in his mid-30s, and Conner, who was described as being nearly 60, have experienced health problems since being incarcerated. Officials say Nethercutt is suffering complications from pancreatitis, while Conner is suffering from chronic high blood pressure.
Authorities allowed volunteers to bring Conner medicine early yesterday, but refused to allow them to visit Nethercutt. Officials were also unclear as to whether Nethercutt had been taken for treatment to an area hospital or whether he was being treated on-site at a detention center health facility.
Foote says he is confident the men will be exonerated, but believes they will have to endure a lengthy court battle to prove their innocence. He also said he is having difficulty raising bail money and that he asked Sutton to help, but that he refused.
Although the current "mission" on Sutton's ranch is over, Foote pledges that the incident won't permanently damage Ranch Rescue.
"We just have to pick our battles," he said. "Right now, I just want to get these guys out of jail."
If the citizenry of Texas does not do what ever it takes restrain this out-of-control renegade and his minions, we deserve what ever enemy nations have in store for us!
Hmmm..... one really has to watch whom one votes for.
Sorry those white trash border vigilantes are stuck, but when you act like trash, you get treated like trash.
Last I noticed, those cruise missiles weren't being launched against locations in El Salvador or Guatemala, nor were Mestiszos trying to blow up North American infrastructure.
Actually, this statement is somewhat problematic - the act of patting someone down for weapons implies a citizens arrest, which under Texas law (from what I've read) can only be done upon witnessing a felony. The border groups really need to stick to observation and reporting to the BP instead of making direct contact with illegals, because it puts them in the position of giving politically-motivated LEOs an action against them.
Nice addition to the debate here. Do you always go around pouring gasoline on fires?
;)
Yup, patting these folks down and restricting their movement was probably sufficient for assault.
INAL but I don't think non LEA's can detain somebody for simply trespassing.
Not necessarily - I talked to freeper Marine Inspector at length about this. The initial offense is an administrative offense and is not a felony. Subsequent crossings may be a felony, but the act of illegal entry is not the apparent felony in progress of, say, burglary or assault. Most of the Arizona groups limit citizens arrests of illegals to those observed removing belongings from ranch buildings - if they are simply crossing the border, the groups call in the position of the illegals to the Border Patrol, kinda like a neighborhood watch.
Third Anti-Drug Helicopter in Four Days Crashes in Mexico == FIRST TWO WERE ''SHOT DOWN'''
Hey open border ...New World order types do not like the border being watched..To that I say tough
It's still better done within the guidelines of Texas law. If you are an activist and you are engaging in legal actions that really piss off the local political powers, they will be waiting for ANY misstep to harrass you.
I guess you didnt notice the border patrol officers that have been murdered or the growing number of corpses we are finding lying around in the desert or the incursions of mexican military units into the US who dont mind shooting at our law enforcement. Maybe if you pulled your head out of your *** you might notice things a little better.
Simple illegal entry is only a misdemeanor. Alien smuggling is a felony, as is (I think) re-entry after deportation.
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