The US Border Patrol’s 100 Mile Discretionary Zone

Earlier, squashed linked a story about the Border Patrol’s “jurisdiction to enforce immigration laws within 100 miles of the border […including] inland transit hubs.” The ACLU had taken this up several years back with publication of a “Constitution-Free Zone” map showing the approximate area covered, for your reference:

squashed:

If somebody in uniform wakes you up on the train, shines a light in your eyes, and demands to see your immigration papers… And you may well be in the backwards and repressive state of … New York.

Yes, New York. (Or maybe Ohio, where the same things happen.) The Border Patrol opened a small station to inspect a ferry from Toronto. The ferry closed. Rather than closing, the station ballooned to ten times its previous size. And, since there isn’t a border-crossing to monitor, it simply profiles and arrests people on wholly domestic transportation.

In case you had any doubts, the agents aren’t waking up and interrogating everybody. They just do it to the people who don’t look white enough.

It’s worth noting I’ve been given the perfunctory “are you a citizen?” business by a Border Patrol agent in this zone while traveling domestically; anecdotal evidence it isn’t just non-whites being picked on. However, I didn’t realize - and wasn’t informed - answering was voluntary. I wonder if there will be a Miranda for so-called “consensual and nonintrusive conversation.”

1 year ago  /  19 notes  /  Source: squashed