Deadly Patrols
Civilian deaths at the hands of U.S. Border Patrol agents are increasing even though illegal immigration and assaults against agents are down. This was the conclusion of a months-long investigation by nonprofit media organizations into incidents in three border states. Reporters identified at least 14 men and boys who have died since Oct. 1, 2009, after confrontations with Border Patrol agents. This special report illuminates serious questions about follow-up and accountability.
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Cochise County Attorney Ed Rheinheimer sits down for an interview on Tuesday, June 26, 2012.
Brad Racino
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Once you introduce politics into the criminal justice system, said Cochise County Attorney Ed Rheinheimer, "you no longer have a criminal justice system." On Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Brad Racino
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Since being shot by a U.S. Border Patrol agent in November 2010, Jesus Castro Romo has been walking with a cane. "With timeÉ the nerve will be crooked. That is how I will remain," he said on Wednesday, June 27, 2012.
Brad Racino
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Jesus Castro Romo speaks with legal investigator Marcelo Ruiz and reporter Roxana Popescu at his home in Nogales, Mexico, on Wednesday, June 27, 2012.
Brad Racino
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Jesus Castro Romo takes various pills for various kinds of pain..."I am in pain all the time," he says. "The medicines have no effect" on Wednesday, June 27, 2012.
Brad Racino
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Jesus Castro Romo's various pain medications lie in a bin on his dining room table. "They told me to go to the center for pain (management) so that I would not take pills anymore because they are affecting my stomach," he said. "Since the.medications are strong, they can cause me side effects on my pancreas or kidneys. They are already affecting me, and it is best to go to a place where mentally I can cure my pain more with the mind. So that I am not in pain." On Wednesday, June 27, 2012.
Brad Racino
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This room is where Jesus Castro Romo spends much of his time..."Here, I spend my time in bed watching televisionÉ They call me the soap opera guy," said Castro Romo on Wednesday, June 27, 2012.
Brad Racino
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Jesus Castro Romo, shown in this 2012 photo, crossed the border in November 2010 to get to Tucson, Arizona, for a landscaping job. He said he was chased down by the Border Patrol and shot.
Brad Racino
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Jesus Castro Romo's attorney, William Risner, says, "The Border Patrol could do a better job of checking their agents, training them better, actually do things to make them do a better job, where it's safer for the people they encounter," on Thursday, June 29, 2012.
Brad Racino
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Despite a drop in apprehensions of illegal immigrants, altercations involving border patrol agents and migrants have risen in recent years. Rock throwing by migrants at agents grew by almost 25% between 2007 and 2010 according to data from Customs and Border Protection. And fatal shootings of migrants by agents have also grown steadily, from 1 in 2008 to 5 in 2011.
Brad Racino
Part 1: The One Who Lived To Tell
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KPBS Midday EditionAbout one and a half years ago, Jesus Castro Romo was trying to sneak into the United States through Arizona’s hilly backcountry when a Border Patrol agent on horseback spotted his group of about 12 travelers. They scattered. The agent zeroed in on Castro.
Part 2: Challenges to Prosecution
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Take a map of Arizona, draw a square in the bottom right hand corner -- the one closest to New Mexico and the international border -- and you get Cochise County. Fewer people live here than in many cities, and it’s part of the nation’s most active illegal immigration corridor.
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