Editor’s note: This article has been updated with a statement from Border Patrol officials in El Paso.
EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) — An immigrant advocacy group continues to see what it calls a systemic pattern of abuse and lack of accountability under which law enforcement agencies interact with migrants and border residents.
During its binational abuse documentation campaign, the El Paso-based Border Network for Human Rights identified 177 alleged cases of abuse, and it documented 52 cases of abuse allegedly committed by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies from El Paso and Southern New Mexico to Texas’s Rio Grande Valley.
Each year, volunteers interview migrants and members of the community, urging them to document instances of abuse, ranging from verbal, psychological and physical abuse to the denial of due process, racial profiling and gender discrimination.
What BNHR said it noticed during this survey was abuse resulting from border security initiatives — as well as possible violations of those policies — at the state and federal levels.
“It’s a massive violation of civil and human rights,” said Fernando Garcia, BNHR executive director. “What we’re seeing is that our border communities and migrants are being subjected to a number of programs — local, state and federal — that are impacting their lives, the well being, and civil rights.”
The report accuses the state of Texas of meddling in federal immigration enforcement through Operation Lone Star, stating that state law enforcement agencies “do not possess the adequate training, procedures, or training to minimize harm in the communities they serve.”
Operation Lone Star is a multi-billion-dollar border security initiative funded by the state of Texas. It includes the deployment of National Guard troops and Department of Public Safety troopers to the border, and, among other things, a state-funded border wall and the busing of migrants to the Democratic-led cities around the U.S.
“This is very worrisome, the fact that we have state officers, state police now enforcing immigration laws as a part of a political game … that now has very clear and dangerous consequences,” Garcia said.
The report highlights a deadly DPS pursuit that ended in Downtown El Paso earlier this year.
On March 22, 2023, DPS initiated a pursuit at the West Towne Marketplace in Northwest El Paso. The driver was carrying four migrants and had crashed into several vehicles before DPS troopers caught up on an overpass in Downtown El Paso.
The driver, a man from Weatherford, Texas, jumped from the overpass and died. One of the migrants also jumped from the overpass and was critically injured.
“We found how the DPS pursuits of vehicles — going after immigrants — has increased dramatically from two years ago from almost non-existent to like 200 incidents just in 2023,” Garcias said.
The report also accused the Border Patrol’s El Paso Sector of violating its own policies, specifically the Department of Homeland Security’s guidelines for immigration enforcement actions in or near protected areas, like churches, community centers and schools.
The report also cites several incidents in which those surveyed accused Border Patrol agents of verbal and physical abuse and child endangerment.
A 29-year-old migrant from Venezuela told volunteers that she and her family were outside Sacred Heart Church when Border Patrol agents in “white and green” vehicles arrived.
She said she grabbed her young daughter as her husband grabbed their son and ran toward the church.
The migrant woman said a border agent had a black stick and “started yelling a bunch of rude things.” She said she thought the agent would hit her, adding that the agent threw a boy onto the ground and another agent threw a woman who tried to run away onto the ground.
In that incident alone, the Border Patrol is accused of verbal and/or psychological abuse, physical abuse for the use of disproportionate force, child endangerment, and violation of the sensitive locations memorandum for police action on the premises of a religious location.
In a statement to Border Report, a spokesperson with the Border Patrol’s El Paso Sector said the agency cannot act upon any perceived issues or allegations unless they are brought to their attention through formal channels.
“(U.S. Customs and Border Protection) maintains close relationship with stakeholders and non-governmental organizations and routinely works with these groups on matters of mutual interest. We would encourage those groups to have any person who shares a concern with the organization to also reach out to CBP to have the issue addressed.
“If an individual believes that a CBP employee has acted unprofessionally that person should follow established protocols to remedy the matter immediately if possible. We encourage the person to ask to speak to a supervisor. If that is not possible then there are a number of other avenues available for recourse.”
Individuals can submit a complaint on the CBP website, which also has a newly-launched accountability and transparency page as a public resource.
BNHR conducted its survey from 2022-2023. Among its recommendations, BNHR believes Gov. Greg Abbott, R-Texas, should cease and desist the implementation of Operation Lone Star and withdraw troopers and National Guard members from the border. The group also recommends that the Border Patrol lay out specific procedures for obtaining a warrant of resident permission for conducting searches.