Whoa...tell THAT to Rev. Robin Hoover, Jim Cooper, and other people aiding and abetting the invaders.
See here and here for more evidence of people providing "furtherance of illegal entry".
Posted on 06/24/2003 8:58:40 AM PDT by JackelopeBreeder
American Border Patrol is seeding a Huachuca Mountain canyon with ground sensors in final preparation for its first operational testing of a tracking system that will also use GPS-guided unmanned drones.
In the testing, the private border-watch group will try to detect, document and then broadcast live images of the flow of illegal border crossers trekking across a sparsely populated canyon south of Sierra Vista. The area has become a major footpath for illegal border crossers.
American Border Patrol founder Glenn Spencer said the location was selected after area residents approached his group seeking help in curbing the ongoing flow of illegal entrants crossing through their properties. Spencer said he intends to demonstrate that the use of relatively low-cost technology to detect and intercept illegal entrants is possible, while providing some immediate relief to frustrated property owners.
From their home in the Huachuca Mountains, Ken Allison and his wife have watched large groups of illegal immigrants pour over their property as they descend from the mountain footpaths they use to avoid the U.S. Border Patrol and link up with smuggler's vehicles on nearby Arizona 92.
Allison said that after years of frustration with the U.S. Border Patrol's response, Spencer's plan "offers a hope that something can be changed."
"If they do succeed, it will probably make things better for us," he said. "But the more important thing is that the information they gather be used."
The camera-equipped, pilotless aircraft program resulted in international attention for Spencer's group when testing began last April.
But Spencer said the heart of the detection system is ground sensors equipped with a specially modified seismic microphone capable of detecting a human footstep.
As of Monday, American Border Patrol had installed more than a half-dozen sensors. The group expects to have at least 25 in the ground by the end of the week and 50 within a month along trails popular with illegal entrants cutting through private property between the Huachuca Mountains' southeastern slope and the San Pedro River.
By year's end, Spencer said up to 500 sensors could be in place throughout Southern Arizona and as many as five of the group's drones, called Border Hawk aircraft, could be in operation.
The information the sensors provide will be relayed to the U.S. Border Patrol so agents can be dispatched to intercept individuals or groups. Spencer's group plans to monitor, and publicize, the agency's response.
The group's drones, remote-controlled planes about 5 feet long, would be dispatched to the triggered sensor, going into a pre-programmed search pattern. The aircraft can stay airborne for up to 90 minutes and have an operating radius of about 15 miles. They cost between $10,000 and $20,000, depending on their equipment, Spencer said.
Frank Amarillas, a spokesman for the U.S. Border Patrol, said the agency does not respond to statements or activities of groups like Spencer's.
In general, Amarillas said, "the Border Patrol appreciates the efforts of nongovernmental organizations and members of the general public, however discourages private parties from taking matters into their own hands."
For people wanting to help someone in distress, the best course of action is to contact the appropriate law enforcement authority and "refrain from providing transportation or other assistance . . . that may be viewed as furtherance of illegal entry." That, he said, could result in prosecution.
Whoa...tell THAT to Rev. Robin Hoover, Jim Cooper, and other people aiding and abetting the invaders.
See here and here for more evidence of people providing "furtherance of illegal entry".
Because they hate to be shown-up?
They've sent video live over the internet periodically. Take a look at this archived example.
There also may be some links here.
The Border Patrol is not incompetent.
If civilian patrols had to follow the same policy and regulations sent down from Washington, then they would be ineffective also.
The problem is in Washington, not the Border Patrol.
During an eight-month period in 2001, agents working at checkpoints nationwide arrested 81,124 aliens, criminals, and other law violators and seized over 365,808 pounds of marijuana and cocaine.
Sounds like your misinformed.
Do you have facts to back up that assertion?
It's good that the group is a non-governmental organization. If they were being supported by the government, who the heck would trust them? American Border Patrol looks to be telling the truth, whereas this government is an ongoing lie.
The BP agents on the ground do the best they can with what they are provided. They aren't the problem, IMO.
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