Anger and tensions remain high after an El Paso Border Patrol agent shot and killed a Mexican teen. As the debate rages on both sides of the border, tonight we've learned a video that captured what happened could already be in the hands of authorities.
Family members of Sergio Adrian Hernandez Huereka screaming in agony over his death have no doubt stirred emotions in people who see him as an innocent victim. But not everyone believes victim is a title he's earned. According the FBI, the 14-year-old was not only breaking the law by trying to cross illegally into the U.S. Monday night, but he also assaulted Border Patrol agents who ultimately shot and killed him.
Huereka's family has told the media that he was just playing by the river. It's one of many issues being debated, and now we've learned a video tape may exist that might clear things up.
and now the video of how it all went down..
in the video, you can clearly see a group of individuals by the fence that faces ElPaso, them crossing over the river is illegal of course. 1 Border patrol agent all by himself, tries to restrain an individual while the others flee back into Juarez, Mx and begin throwing rocks at the agent...
2 women are speaking in the video
1 of the ladies is clearly on the agents side, saying "well he has to defend himself, their throwing rocks at him"
what do you all think about this?
yukii
quote:
CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico – U.S. and Mexican officials are trading suggestions of misconduct as the shooting of a 15-year-old Mexican by a
U.S. Border Patrol agent on the border with Texas swells into a full-blown international incident.
Arturo Sandoval, spokesman for the Chihuahua state Attorney General's Office, says a shell casing was found near the body.
A U.S. official close to the investigation says a video shows what appear to be four
Mexican law enforcement agents crossing the border, picking up an undetermined object and returning to Mexico. The official says on condition of anonymity the video shows the Border Patrol agent who shot the boy never entered Mexico.
The
FBI said Tuesday the agent fired at rock throwers Monday evening.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
EL PASO, Texas (AP) — A U.S. Border Patrol agent shot and killed a 15-year-old Mexican boy after a group trying to illegally enter the U.S. threw rocks at the agents at an international bridge near downtown El Paso, authorities said Tuesday.
The shooting, which happened Monday evening, drew sharp criticism from Mexico, where the government said Tuesday that "the use of firearms to repel attacks with stones represents disproportionate use of force, particularly coming from authorities who have received specialized training."
According to the FBI,
Border Patrol agents were responding to a group of suspected illegal immigrants being smuggled into the U.S. near the Paso Del Norte bridge, across from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico around 6:30 p.m. Monday.
One suspected illegal immigrant was detained on the levy on the U.S. side, the FBI said in a statement. Another Border Patrol agent arrived on the concrete bank where the Rio Grande would be if there was water flowing, and detained a second suspect. Other suspects ran back into Mexico and began throwing rocks, the FBI said.
At least one rock came from behind the agent, who was kneeling beside the suspected illegal immigrant he had prone on the ground, said FBI spokeswoman Andrea Simmons.
The agent told the rock throwers to stop and back off, but they continued. The agent fired his weapon several times, hitting one who later died, said the FBI, which is leading the investigation because it involved an assault on a federal officer. The agent was not injured, Simmons said.
Border Patrol Special Operations Supervisor Ramiro Cordero said preliminary reports show that Border Patrol agents on bicycle patrol "were assaulted with rocks by an unknown number of people."
"During the assault at least one agent discharged his firearm," he said. "The agent is currently on administrative leave. A thorough, multi-agency investigation is currently on-going."
Chihuahua State officials released a statement Tuesday demanding a full investigation into the death of the boy, identified as Sergio Adrian Hernandez Huereca.
The boy's sister, Rosario Hernandez, told Associated Press Television News that her brother was playing with several friends and did not plan to cross the border.
"They say that they started firing from over there and suddenly hit him in the head," she said Monday.
His mother, Maria Guadalupe Guereca, told Milenio TV in Mexico that her son had gone to visit his brother, who handles luggage at a border
customs office. While there, he met up with a group of friends and they decided to hang out by the river, she said.
"That was his mistake, to have gone to the river," she said. "That's why they killed him."
She said he ran and hid underneath one of the bridge's pillars upon hearing gunfire.
"He was a boy, and even then they killed him," she said. "I ask that they punish them. ... They left me without anything."
Sergio Belmonte, spokesman for the
Ciudad Juarez mayor, said state justice officials have the body and are performing an autopsy before releasing the body to the family.
The boy was shot once near the eye, and authorities found one 40-millimeter casing near the body on Mexican soil, said Arturo Sandoval, a spokesman for the Chihuahua Attorney General's office. Authorities are still investigating the bullet's trajectory, he said.
Mexico's Foreign Relations Department said it "energetically condemns" the shooting and demanded "an expeditious and transparent investigation of the facts and, if applicable, punishment of the guilty."
"Mexico is aware of the existing risks in the region, but, according to international standards,
lethal force must be used only when the lives of people are in immediate danger and not as a dissuasive measure," it said.
The department said its records indicated that the number of Mexicans killed or wounded by immigration authorities rose from five in 2008 to 12 in 2009 to 17 so far this year, which is not yet half over.
The Rio Grande, which marks the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas, is now a broad muddy moat flanked by shallow concrete banks.
T.J. Bonner, president of the union representing
Border Patrol agents, said rock throwing incidents against Border Patrol agents are common and capable of causing serious injury.
"It is a deadly force encounter," Bonner said. "One that justifies the use of deadly force."
The violence in Mexico combined with assaults against Border Patrol agents in the U.S. has increased the level of apprehension agents have about their safety, Bonner said.
Less than two weeks ago, Mexican migrant Anastacio Hernandez, 32, died after a
Customs and Border Protection officer shocked him with a stun gun at the San Ysidro border crossing that separates San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico.
Last week the San Diego medical examiner's office ruled that death a homicide.
I don't know. This is a messy situation- different details to the story are being told. Border patrol say the kids were tyring to cross over, the mother/sister say the kids went to play there. You could argue both sides, don't you think if the kids wanted to cross they would have luggage/clothes/food carrying on them- wouldn't his mother/sister be going with him as well? Then again, of all places, why do the kids choose to play where they know they could be in danger of border patrol?
This story is very sad, because all it does is create further hatred and discrimination from both sides towards one another. I understand Americans may think Mexicans are just fat, short, brown people who wear ponchos, are dirty, uneducated, and only good for cooking tacos & cleaning houses. It makes me sad to see people not wanting to represent their Mexican heritage in shame. Americans need to understand Mexicans have nothing to be ashamed about or any reason to put up with this idea of Mexicans being the scum of society. Mexicans that are rich, stay rich- those that are poor, stay poor. The government is corrupt and everything is ruled by the narcs. Why doesn't it change? Because no one is willing to be the hero (with good reason). Decapitated bodies of officials or people who tried doing "the right thing" for their country (and those lower narcs that didn't follow orders/were caught snitching) can be found in the streets early in the morning.
There are people who try really hard to live the right way and work hard for a living in Mexico but it's almost impossible. I know someone who grew up in Mexico with the highest grades throughout school, she went to Law School and became a lawyer. She was in the practice for a couple of years until she had a case where she was threatened and offered money as a bribe. She refused and found her office the next day completely destroyed with broken glass and files everywhere with another more serious death threat if she didn't follow their orders (fall under corruption). She immediately resigned from the case and lost her job. Now?
She works in a bakery in San Antonio, Texas as an illegal immigrant.
Her husband now works gardening/building houses- he also was a Lawyer. What are these people to do? No one stands up, their country is impoverished & corrupt, life is almost impossible. So of course, people take the high risk and attempt crossing the border. They can't just file the papers (which takes years) and sit at home waiting for their green card to come in the mail. Your choices are: become a narc, live a miserable life in Mexico, or take a chance and cross the border as an illegal.
Our government is not doing enough to create a system for handleing our border and recieving immigrants into the country in an efficient way. If an Anglo American were to be playing at that same spot and a Mexican official shot him "in defense"- the reaction would be monumental in the US, it would be all over FOX/CNN.
Seriously- the guy had to whip out his fire arm because they were throwing him rocks? It's as if a stranger outside taps me on the shoulder to ask me directions and I turn to stab the person "in self defense." The man's reaction was completely unappropriate. He could have ran to his truck to call for back up, used pepper spray, a taser, or just handcuffed the kid to take him into custody.
These actions are really disgusting (at least to me) and no one will bring this man to justice for the unappropriate and unnecesarry killing of a kid.
People can argue that we must protect our borders and that he was rightfully shot for attempting to cross, but I think this goes farther than just rules and regulation. There's an embedded hatred/dislike of the people on the other side and people who have too much power in their hands abuse it.
If you want things to change, this is not the way, look how well it's gone thus far. Nothing will change until we learn to coexist.
Chairman Meow
Shouldn't have been ing around. His fault. What kind of parents lets their kid "play" on the border?
yukii
quote:
Originally posted by Chairman Meow
Shouldn't have been ing around. His fault. What kind of parents lets their kid "play" on the border?
The mother didn't even know he was there. He shouldn't have been there = his fault = he's dead; because of THAT type of mind set, doesn't get resolved. I bet if that were your brother you wouldn't react the same way and find it unfair.
Shakka
quote:
Originally posted by Chairman Meow
Shouldn't have been ing around. His fault. What kind of parents lets their kid "play" on the border?
It's unfortunate and it's more unfortunate that lethal force was somehow involved, but I completely agree with your statement--this wasn't a 5 year old kid or a mentally unsound person. Who the hell "plays" on the border? That's just asking for trouble. Who plays with a lit stick of dynamite? Who plays with a loaded gun? Unfortunately, kids in particular often think they are invincible.
That all said, I couldn't tell what the was going on in the video.
w_ashley
Why the use of deadly force for what appeared to be an unarmed youth.
clearly the person with the gun ed up. I could say many o bad things about "overkill" of process by the US, but I'm not going to waste my breath, anyone with half a brain should understand that the US is ed in the head with its disdaine for human rights and lawful order.
Yeah I'm sure next thing we'll find out is, the 14 yo had an uzi up his az or something to make it all better.
Shooting live rounds at someone throwing a rock is overkill.
He could have cuffed and dragged the "person he aprehended" in a safe manner without killing the other person.
While throwing of rocks wasn't "a good judgement call" police should not respond to a thrown stone with live rounds. Disengagement or only firing on them in US territory would have been more prudent.
the whole SPP factor is there but there is a definate "reasonable use of force issue here"
Was there a threat to live or limb - I say no.
So no gun should have been involved.
The officer should have restrained - issued warnings and sought a safe location until backup and contact with mexican autorities could be established.
Pulling the gun and giving a warning about shooting if they continued to throw stones.
Also it would of been much easier just to let them cross back instead of wasting 10's of thousands of dollars on aprehending them.
Them as youths likely would have just been a pain in the ass for administration factors.
However a killing blow was not required.
Chairman Meow
quote:
Originally posted by yukii
The mother didn't even know he was there. He shouldn't have been there = his fault = he's dead; because of THAT type of mind set, doesn't get resolved. I bet if that were your brother you wouldn't react the same way and find it unfair.
The article said, "Huereka's family has told the media that he was just playing by the river." The guard probably used excessive force, but if you play with fire, you're going to get burned.
w_ashley
quote:
Originally posted by Chairman Meow
The article said, "Huereka's family has told the media that he was just playing by the river." The guard probably used excessive force, but if you play with fire, you're going to get burned.
Comapring a US agency to "fire" is not only backward, but demonstrates how insane the US has become.
What was the officer doing standing 10 ft from the border - alone - anyway?
Having lone customs officials in a "warzone" or heavy drug war area ain't too bright.
If anyone had guns in that area that officer standing in the middle of nowhere could have been dead fast.
OR maybe - he knew that it was just a bunch of kids that posed no danger to him. But he played god and killed the kid - even though "he didn't think there was a danger" taking on four people by himself, in what was a highly non defensive situation - had the kids actually attempted to attack him.
For all we know the stone thrower thought his freind was in danger - and tried to defend him from being hurt by the officer - thus a defence of duress might exist - that is serious bodily harm since he was in another country but still being threatened with a firearm from the other side of the border - in a case that prooves true.
I'm not saying the kid was right to throw the stone but I am saying the officer was wrong to kill the kid at that point - there was no reasonable attempt to resolve the situation, without escalation - and based on the arrest it could have been disengaged.
He could have fired a warning shot then, continued the arrest, instead of doing a lethal kill. Also I don't get the sense of imminent danger from the situation -
Eg. stay on the ground and don't move (potentially in spanish also)
- then watched for stones or dragged the other person to the concrete pillar until the b.o. in the jeep or the one running from above showed up to reinforce and expedite the arrest and secure the area.
pkcRAISTLIN
quote:
Originally posted by Shakka
It's unfortunate and it's more unfortunate that lethal force was somehow involved, but I completely agree with your statement--this wasn't a 5 year old kid or a mentally unsound person. Who the hell "plays" on the border? That's just asking for trouble. Who plays with a lit stick of dynamite? Who plays with a loaded gun? Unfortunately, kids in particular often think they are invincible.
That all said, I couldn't tell what the was going on in the video.
even still, since when is border crossing punishable by death? exactly what is the child doing that warrants being shot? :conf:
Chairman Meow
quote:
Originally posted by ********
Comapring a US agency to "fire" is not only backward, but demonstrates how insane the US has become.
Right because throwing rocks at border patrol, running back and forth over the barriers, and taunting them is just innocent fun...:rolleyes:...It's like poking a lion with a stick and being upset that the lion bit your face off. happens. Don't around on the border and you won't have to deal with law enforcement. Granted border patrol overreacted, but the whole incident could have been avoided by that kid or at the very least, good parenting, which of course is hard to come by given the kid probably had like 20 siblings.
w_ashley
quote:
Originally posted by pkcRAISTLIN
even still, since when is border crossing punishable by death? exactly what is the child doing that warrants being shot? :conf:
When I was being held in detention - I heard stories about coyotes being shot (coyote = person who helps others cross the border illegally) by minutemen.
Rumor perhaps but this gives it some credence.
"PS I crossed the border at an international entry point" I didn't attempt to illegally immigrate - but customs insists I'm trying to immigrate to the US - which is total BS. Which is why I was put in detention on top of the fact of them being s.
w_ashley
quote:
Originally posted by Chairman Meow
Right because throwing rocks at border patrol, running back and forth over the barriers, and taunting them is just innocent fun...:rolleyes:...
They were minors. Their behaviour was a little immature - but they also were still a little immature. I've taught people around their age, and kids will act up because they think its cool (and it is for them) they don't see the same seriousness, and often don't fully grasp potentials that more experienced adults might. Whether you like it or not - it was the border agent who was enforcing artificial laws, that the youth likely didn't understand the seriousness of.
A universal human right is right of mobility - borders obfuscate and infringe on that right. So in terms of "immature" it is the US government being immature for killing people for exercising their right to freedom of movement and mobility. It is the US government that enforced militancy, by abducting one of that kids friends - although under premise of mental archtype - that is by creating mental process which heads to a law enforcement officers request to submit to their command. That person being arrested subjected themselves to the officer - the other kid seemingly felt the need to respond with physical force. The officer then did the same type of behaviour that they saw as "wrong". Two wrongs don't make a right, they make two wrongs.
quote:
It's like poking a lion with a stick and being upset that the lion bit your face off. happens. Don't around on the border and you won't have to deal with law enforcement. Granted border patrol overreacted, but the whole incident could have been avoided by that kid or at the very least, good parenting, which of course is hard to come by given the kid probably had like 20 siblings.
If you want to blame the parents for neglect I would blame the state for infringing human rights.
