Dangers Of Border Corruption

Throughout its more than hundred year history, the Federal Bureau of Investigations has been a very important agency to the United States. As a threat-based and intelligence-driven national security organization, the mission of the FBI is to protect and defend the United States against terrorist and foreign intelligence threats, to enforce the criminal laws of the United States, and to provide leadership to federal, state, and international agencies (“A Brief History of the FBI”). The Bureau’s success has always depended on its agility, its willingness to adapt, and the ongoing dedication of its personnel. But in the years since

The problem of drugs coming over into the United States from Mexico is not new, but it is serious and in spite of many efforts by American law enforcement and border authorities, it continues day after day. This paper reviews the problem from several perspectives and brings to light attempts the U.S. has made to stop drug trafficking on our border with Mexico. The biggest issue regarding border security is the power of the drug cartels, and the majority of emphasis in this paper is directed towards the cartels.

The United States Border Patrol has a mission and duty to protect our borders through regulating laws and preventing illegal terrorists, drugs, and weapons from entering the United States. This has been a clear goal ever since laws have been passed to help secure our borders back in 1924. The need for Border Patrol and the demand for tighter security plans have been increasing due to terrorist attacks on American soil, the presence of radical groups, and a high rate of crime in the United States. The big idea here is that as crime continues to develop so will our border securities. I would like to primarily focus on the current role of the Border Patrol versus what it might have been in years past. Many tragedies have occurred in recent times more than what was experienced years ago. The United States has suffered throughout the year 2000 and continues to suffer from severe threats to the nation. It only makes sense to make changes and tighten our borders in order to help prevent the ongoing crimes. If the Border Patrol does this than the individuals living in this nation will live in a better and much safer environment. Along with their current role, the research on the Border Patrol’s changes that either have hindered their work or made them more effective will be looked into as well.

In the 1900’s and early 2000’s a series of events would bring a change in priorities for Federal Law Enforcement, namely the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), which was on the brink of being dissolved. “The Inspector General’s 2003 report stated that prior to 9/11, ‘the Bureau devoted significantly more special agent resources to traditional law enforcement activities such as white collar crime,

This paper will be discussing the responsibilities and duties of the U.S. Department of Borders Protection (CBP). It will be explaining if what the CBP do is effective and how so. Also it will be explaining how they prevent terrorist attacks and how they work with other law enforcement agencies.

An example of my experience regarding the critical skill of application is during my time as Incident Commander, overseeing the security operations for a high profile federal court trial in Laredo, Texas. The development of an operational security plan for a high profile trial in a United States Federal Courthouse positioned geographically less than one hundred and fifty yards from the Mexican border can be a challenge. When that trial entails dealing with one of the most powerful and influential drug cartels on the southern border known as Los Zetas, the challenges become critical. The Mexican drug cartel Los Zetas is comprised of former Mexican military soldiers who were originally hired by the Gulf Cartel as enforcers. The Gulf Cartel used members of Los Zetas as their hit squad against rival cartels including local police. Los Zetas emerged as a standalone cartel in 2008 severing their ties with the Gulf Cartel. The Mexican city of Nuevo Laredo is the home base of the Zeta Cartel and is directly across the border from Laredo, Texas.

The U.S. Border Patrol started its service for our nation in 1924. Even though some changes have affected every aspect of the operations from its early days, the values, professionalism, honor, integrity, and respect helped shape the Border Patrol from the early years and they still remain the same today. Since the very beginning agents have been patrolling our borders, “Mounted watchmen of the U.S. Immigration Service patrolled the border in an effort to prevent illegal crossings as early as 1904” (Border Patrol History, web). The agent’s efforts were undertaken only when resources permitted. The inspectors were all out of El Paso, Texas, “Though they never totaled more than seventy-five, they patrolled as far west as California trying to restrict the flow of illegal Chinese immigration” (Border Patrol History, web).

As previously established, the United States, a country with borders stretching over thousands of miles, lacks the capacity to fully observe and protect every corner of its territory. Some individuals seem unmoved by so many undocumented persons entering the country, stating that “borders should generally be open and… people should normally be free to leave their country of origin and settle in another…” (Higgins 528). However, these proponents of open borders neglect to recognize that as hundreds of illegal immigrants cross the borders, the issue of terrorism and overall safety becomes a major concern. Without undergoing the proper restrictions and precautions required to enter the United States, these illegal immigrants could potentially be a major threat to the country. So in order to decrease these Terrisits attacks in the United States, we need to strengthen the border security. Because of the events of 9/11 and the expanding population of displaced people, the legislature of the United States has consistently expanded its endeavors to upgrade national security over the previous years. The Secure Fence Act of 2006, marked into law by George W. Shrubbery, ordered the development of 652 miles of wall along our Southern fringes. What's more, as of February 2012, DHS has finished 651 miles of obstructions. As per DHS, the quantity of Border Patrol specialists

A nation without borders is not a nation. Today, every country is putting efforts to secure its borders not only from terrorists and drugs smuggling, but also from the illegal immigration. All these recurring activities have sparked the United States to secure its borders against illegal immigrants and terrorism by creating a special department named the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS is headed by the Secretary of Homeland Security. After the terrorist attack of 9/11, terrorism and illegal immigration were two striking issues for the DHS. To solve these issues, the Department of Homeland Security further created two immigration enforcement agencies: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in year 2003. The United States has over seven-thousand miles of border to cover each day. The US shares its borders with Canada and Mexico. That’s why the CBP was established to safeguard our borders through the deployment of technology, personnel, and infrastructure. The US Border Patrol is the most visible of DHS’s agencies and is now touching majority of population than ever before. It has increased its strength to more than 21,000 agents, up from 8,500 in 2001and 4,000 in 1994(17). The primary function of the Border Patrol Agency is apprehension of terrorists, drug interdiction and immigration enforcement. The book ‘Border Patrol Nation’ by Todd Miller is a classic example of the Border Patrol

From personal experience, a friend of mine whose father worked as a border patrol officer, my friend would say a lot about dealing with scary situations. My friend would mention at times that she families would receive a few anonymous letters, saying how much they hated his father. The notation that border patrol man are bad and that they abuse innocent people is completely wrong but some people believe that. If some people have strong dislike toward border patrol officers, they will seek to make their life as horrible as they can. The unfortunate families that go through the loss of a loved one, are left with sorrow and at times anger. Brain Terry the officer, mention before, was killed by Mexican bandits and whose family has lose trust in the government. Brains uncle, Ralph Terry stated, “The entire Terry Family has experienced a level of ‘trust deficit’ in their government… it hurts to be treated like this and adds insult to injury when the President speaks of phony scandal” (Pavlich). In other words, Terry’s family is upset about some of the President’s remarks about phony scandals dealing with border security, when they are dealing with sorrow from the death of their loved one, Brain Terry. Families like Terry’s and others go through a lot emotions while their loved one is out on the border. The deaths of officers and the struggles of families is a other reason why the United States should decrease the manpower and increase the use of technology. The

United States Border Patrol has been around since 1904 enforcing and regulating laws under the immigration and Nationality Act. U.S. border patrol is now under the Department of Homeland Security, which was created as a response to the attacks of September 11, 2001. Over the years, their jurisdiction and missions have changed to better protect the safety of nation. Although border patrol is a need for any nation, their extensive acceptations to constitutional laws can often be taken advantage of. The mission of the U.S. border patrol should be to prevent illegal aliens, which are a threat to American society, from reaching their purpose. Frequently, their purpose can be confused or executed in a bias manner.

Cities on both sides of the Mexican-American border are continuously terrorized by drug cartels as a way to keep control over shipping routes and silence from citizens. (Wilkinson 2008) In 2010 an employee of the United States Embassy in Mexico was murdered along the Mexico-American border. This added tension to the ongoing drug trafficking problem and raised the issue of Mexico’s inability to control its own borders. Felipe Calderon, the President of Mexico, stated that he is seeking a stronger relationship with the United States. The effects of this relationship can be seen on the streets with the intensified level of violence against the drug cartels and the effectiveness of the government. (Dresser 2009)

We see this with the Department of Homeland Security taking lead on drug reduction and illegal border crossing. Vast amounts of intelligence and manpower are required for an effective homeland security program. Additionally, the crossflow of communication is key in-between the various agencies and departments within the government.

Implementing stringent security controls along the borders is likely to reduce the influx of illegal immigration into the United States. With the increased border security, the American government could have helped alleviate the occurrence of the 9/11 bombing. Though this strategy is essential in alleviating the influx of illegal immigrants to certain geographic areas, increased border controls in these locations have made other, less controlled areas of the border more vulnerable. Rising crime rates, discarded debris, increased apprehension rates, and growing public scrutiny in these less secure areas provide clear evidence that border security is at once a social, an economic, and a national security issue.

Transnational crime is a growing problem. Transnational crime is defined as “self-perpetuating associations of individuals who operate transnational for the purpose of obtaining power, influence, monetary and/or commercial gains, wholly or in part by illegal means, while protecting their activities through a pattern of corruption and/ or violence, or while protecting their illegal activities through a transnational structure and the exploitation of transnational commerce or communication mechanisms.” (National Security Council, n.d.) . Transnational crimes are known under other names such as cross-national crime, global crime, international crime, and