A report from the Border Network for Human Rights included the testimony of “J.D.” (identified in news coverage as “Jesus Francisco Davila, 71, a citizen of both Mexico and the United States”) about an abusive interaction with CBP Field Operations personnel at El Paso’s Zaragoza (Ysleta) Port of Entry.
On Oct, 17, at around 3 p.m., I was going through the Zaragoza port of entry. I was hurrying because my wife was waiting for me on the other side of the bridge in El Paso, Texas. When I arrived at the first checkpoint, where the officer was revising the documents, I accidentally showed him my Mexican voter registration card (INE) instead of my border crossing visa. When the officer saw it, he became angry, questioned what my INE card was, and pushed me.
I fell on my back; I tried to cover my head so I wouldn’t hit it. I scratched my elbow and hurt my back. An officer who was close by intervened to stop his colleague from hurting me. Meanwhile, the officer that pushed me was obviously furious and looked like he wanted to hurt me.
I went to speak to a supervisor. They asked if they could take my blood pressure and call an ambulance since it was really high. I was told that an individual was going to take note of what happened to me. But this person never took any notes and showed no interest in what had happened.
They never did anything. Instead, they gave me a flyer with a number I could call later. But I was not interested in doing anything. I just don’t ever want this to happen again.
The Border Network for Human Rights stated that it shared this and other testimonies in its February 2022 abuse monitoring report “with the agencies involved.”
— The State of Human Rights at the U.S. – Mexico Border: Abuse Documentation 2022 Campaign Report (El Paso, Border Network for Human Rights, February 22, 2022) https://bnhr.org/abuse-documentation-2022-campaign-report/.