1 Record of Alleged Abusive or Improper Conduct where the victim classification is “Jamaica”

June 16, 2021

A report from the Kino Border Initiative (KBI) and NETWORK included a Jamaican migrant’s account of violent treatment by Border Patrol agents at Nogales, Arizona’s DeConcini port of entry.

A Jamaican man entered the United States at a port of entry to ask for asylum and was immediately confronted by two Border Patrol agents who physically attacked him. They knocked him to the ground with a plastic barrier and began beating and punching him. One agent put his foot on his neck as he lay on the ground. The agents dragged him across concrete into an office at the port of entry. A third agent told the two that what they were doing was wrong. The other agents dismissed her objection. The Jamaican man was then handcuffed to a bench. Later, he was taken to another room where he was photographed and fingerprinted. When the agents asked why he was there, the Jamaican man said he was seeking asylum. The agents asked where he was from and when he said Jamaica. The agents said, “this is what a bunch of you have been doing (running into the port of entry), you are getting out of here.” They took him to the Mexican immigration office. His friends were in Mexico waiting to see if he got across successfully. The Mexican immigration officers took photos of all their passports and asked them to go to Kino Border Initiative.

KBI filed a June 24, 2021 complaint with the DHS Office on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) and the CBP Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR). On August 6, CRCL emailed “saying they received the complaint and forwarded it to the OIG. No details were provided about disciplinary actions for officers or recourse for victims of abuse.”

Due Process Denied (United States: Kino Border Initiative (KBI) and NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice, August 2021) https://networklobby.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/KINO-NETWORK-CBP-Abuses-consolidated.pdf.

Sector(s): Tucson, Tucson Field Office

Agency(ies): Border Patrol, Office of Field Operations

Event Type(s): Conditions of Arrest or Apprehension, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Use of Force

Last Known Accountability Status: Complaint Filed with CRCL, Complaint Filed with OPR, Shared with DHS OIG

Victim Classification: Black, Jamaica, Single Adult