Each year, more than 50 million vehicles pass through the U.S. Border Patrol that examines people from within the country. There are more than 110 checkpoints, generally located 25 to 100 kilometers from the southwestern and northern borders near U.S. highways. and second ways. All vehicles traveling at the test site may be inspected.
U.S. Border Patrol, a branch within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Customs and Border Protection, is responsible for maintaining U.S. borders between legal ports of entry and preventing the illegal flow of people and products for sale, such as drugs, into the country. At checkpoints, Border Patrol officers inspect vehicles to identify people who may be in the U.S. without law. Attorneys can also apply U.S. criminal law, such as taking illegal drugs or issuing licenses.
To support their cause, the Border Patrol collects data on the arrest of U.S. illegal immigrants. and drug arrest. However, in our new report released earlier this month, we found problems with Border Patrol monitoring of checkpoints and that data providers are collecting other legal activities in local areas. analysis.
Today’s WatchBlog post looks at what we found.
How does Border Patrol manage and monitor test sites?
In our new report, we look at how the Border Patrol works and monitors its testing facilities to make sure they work as planned. Operations in the study areas are overseen by independent units of Border Patrol (field offices) and Border Patrol headquarters, which operated in the administrative office overseeing the 2016 survey.
However, in our new report, we found that Border Patrol has not yet had the clear responsibilities and responsibilities of its headquarters management office. We also found that this office was not staffed equally and adequately, and newly appointed employees may not have all the information they need to complete. office functions. As a result, the administrative office has not yet completed the planned work, which means that Border Patrol headquarters does not have complete information on where the testing facilities are located and how they work or by their functions.
In our report, we have recommended steps to help Border Patrol address these regulatory gaps.
What did the Border Patrol find during the spatial survey?
From the 2016 financial year to 2020, the Border Patrol arrested approximately 35,700 people who may have been illegally in the US in 17,500 XNUMX cases at checkpoints.
At the same time, agents seized the drug in about 17,970 cases of testing. The majority of drug attacks (91%) came from surveys with U.S. citizens only in the car. Of these captured by U.S. citizens drugs, 75% included marijuana and no other drugs.
Border Patrol reports information about what it finds in test sites and uses this data to inform its efforts. We looked at the data collected by the Border Patrol and found that although the details of the panic and drug abuse test were generally reliable, some of the data were not reliable. This included information on: fears of trafficking in canes, canines assisting with drug trafficking, people involved in all law enforcement meetings at checkpoints, and seizure of non-drug paraphernalia (including seizure of vehicles).
Apart from reliable test data, Border Patrol does not have the information it needs to evaluate the effectiveness of the test site, verify the correct distribution of equipment, or explain the testing process.
To learn more about our recommendations at the Border Patrol regarding checkpoints and data collection, among other things, check out our report on immigration checkpoints.
