Little-Acorn
01-21-2008, 08:23 PM
Illegal aliens driving a Hummer across the border swerved to hit a Border Patrol agent on the California/Mexico border. The agent never drew his weapon or fired a shot. He died at the scene.
Sounds like the case from a few years ago, of BP agents Ramos and Compean, has had its effect. In that case, two agents who were pursuing an illegal alien on foot, saw him point an arm back at them with something in his hand. Thinking they were about to be fired on, the agents drew their weapons and fired, wounding the fleeing illegal, who continued into Mexico.
Later, the two BP agents were put in Federal prison, where they remain to this day. The U.S. government contacted Mexican officials and brought the wounded illegal alien back into the United States, where he was the sole witness to testify against the two agents. They also gave the illegal alien a free pass, allowing him to cross the border at will.
The U.S. prosecutor carefully withheld testimony from the trial, showing that the illegal alien was a drug smuggler who had brought in 750 pounds of marijuana that day. And they also withheld evidence showing that the illegal alien made a habit of such smuggling: After they gave him the free pass, he used it to bring in another load of drugs, before the trial of Ramos and Compean began. This was not revealed to the jury. After the trial was over and the agents sent to Federal prison for 11 and 12 years respectively, several jury members remarked that if they had known the illegal alien was a regular drug smuggler (who virtually always go armed), they would not have voted to convict the BP agents.
One likely result of the Ramos/Compean trial, is that there is no way any Border Patrol agent will ever draw his gun again, knowing that even if he survives a potentially deadly encounter, the United States will do everything in its power to put him in Federal prison for a long time.
Now, it seems that that trial, and the example it set, has borne fruit. Last week a BP agent trying to "peaceably" stop a car driven by illegal aliens, was laying down a spike strip on the road. The illegals saw him, and deliberately swerved and hit him, killing him. The agent never drew his weapon, never fired a shot or did anything else to defend himself. All he did was duck, which didn't work.
If the Ramos/ Compean trial had reached a different conclusion, do you suppose this agent would not have been so reluctant to draw and fire at the driver of the onrushing vehicle before he was run down and killed? Do you suppose the illegals in the vehicle KNEW the agent wasn't going to fire at them, and so took advantage to run him down and then flee into Mexico where they couldn't be touched?
We'll never know. Unless, of course, the U.S. goes to the same effort to track those illegals down and bring them in for trial, as the effort they went to to get the wounded illegal in to testify AGAINST Ramos and Compean.
Don't hold your breath.
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http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/state/20080120-9999-1m20agent.html
Fleeing vehicle strikes, kills border agent
By J. Harry Jones
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
January 20, 2008
A U.S. Border Patrol agent was killed yesterday morning when he was intentionally struck by a Hummer fleeing law enforcement officers in the Imperial Sand Dunes near Yuma, Ariz.
The agent was hit about 9:30 a.m. as he was putting down spike strips near Gray's Well Road, about a mile from the border with Mexico.
“The Hummer sped up and swerved toward our agent, killing him,” said Agent Eric Anderson, a spokesman for the agency's Yuma sector.
The agent's name won't be released until next of kin has been notified, Anderson said.
Sounds like the case from a few years ago, of BP agents Ramos and Compean, has had its effect. In that case, two agents who were pursuing an illegal alien on foot, saw him point an arm back at them with something in his hand. Thinking they were about to be fired on, the agents drew their weapons and fired, wounding the fleeing illegal, who continued into Mexico.
Later, the two BP agents were put in Federal prison, where they remain to this day. The U.S. government contacted Mexican officials and brought the wounded illegal alien back into the United States, where he was the sole witness to testify against the two agents. They also gave the illegal alien a free pass, allowing him to cross the border at will.
The U.S. prosecutor carefully withheld testimony from the trial, showing that the illegal alien was a drug smuggler who had brought in 750 pounds of marijuana that day. And they also withheld evidence showing that the illegal alien made a habit of such smuggling: After they gave him the free pass, he used it to bring in another load of drugs, before the trial of Ramos and Compean began. This was not revealed to the jury. After the trial was over and the agents sent to Federal prison for 11 and 12 years respectively, several jury members remarked that if they had known the illegal alien was a regular drug smuggler (who virtually always go armed), they would not have voted to convict the BP agents.
One likely result of the Ramos/Compean trial, is that there is no way any Border Patrol agent will ever draw his gun again, knowing that even if he survives a potentially deadly encounter, the United States will do everything in its power to put him in Federal prison for a long time.
Now, it seems that that trial, and the example it set, has borne fruit. Last week a BP agent trying to "peaceably" stop a car driven by illegal aliens, was laying down a spike strip on the road. The illegals saw him, and deliberately swerved and hit him, killing him. The agent never drew his weapon, never fired a shot or did anything else to defend himself. All he did was duck, which didn't work.
If the Ramos/ Compean trial had reached a different conclusion, do you suppose this agent would not have been so reluctant to draw and fire at the driver of the onrushing vehicle before he was run down and killed? Do you suppose the illegals in the vehicle KNEW the agent wasn't going to fire at them, and so took advantage to run him down and then flee into Mexico where they couldn't be touched?
We'll never know. Unless, of course, the U.S. goes to the same effort to track those illegals down and bring them in for trial, as the effort they went to to get the wounded illegal in to testify AGAINST Ramos and Compean.
Don't hold your breath.
-------------------------------------------------------
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/state/20080120-9999-1m20agent.html
Fleeing vehicle strikes, kills border agent
By J. Harry Jones
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
January 20, 2008
A U.S. Border Patrol agent was killed yesterday morning when he was intentionally struck by a Hummer fleeing law enforcement officers in the Imperial Sand Dunes near Yuma, Ariz.
The agent was hit about 9:30 a.m. as he was putting down spike strips near Gray's Well Road, about a mile from the border with Mexico.
“The Hummer sped up and swerved toward our agent, killing him,” said Agent Eric Anderson, a spokesman for the agency's Yuma sector.
The agent's name won't be released until next of kin has been notified, Anderson said.