On The Line: Inside the U.S. Border Patrol Inside the U.S. Border Patrol

by Krauss, Erich; Pacheco, Alex

• ISBN13: 9780806525433
• ISBN10: 0806525436
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-02-01
• Publisher: Citadel

Summary

The United States Border Patrol is much more than a glorified checkpoint force, rounding up illegal aliens and smugglers as they make their way across our northern and southern borders. In the wake of September 11, 2001, the mission of the Border Patrol has been fundamentally redefined, with emphasis shifting from stopping the flow of drugs and illegal immigration to the critical mission of protecting our vast borders from terrorist infiltration. Agents patrol some 8,000 miles of United States borderlands in helicopters, four-wheel-drive trucks, motorcycles, ATVs, and snowmobiles, as well as on horseback, by bicycle, and on foot. These dedicated men and women learn to clear buildings like the most highly skilled SWAT teams, and their knowledge of immigration law rivals that of many attorneys. The job is lonely, hard and dangerous. Agents often operate in remote areas where their backup can be hours away, forcing them to rely on their instincts and training to confront criminals, and, on many occasions, to save their own lives.

Author Biography

Erich Krauss is a freelance journalist and professional Muay Thai fighter who has trained many United States Border Patrol agents in hand-to-hand combat. He lives in San Diego Alex Pacheco has been a Border Patrol agent since 1998, when he graduated from the 371st session of the United States Border Patrol Academy in Charleston, South Carolina. Over his career he has made hundreds of arrests and confiscated hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of narcotics. As a third-degree black belt in Hap Ki Do and a Champion Muay Thai kickboxer, he has trained many of his fellow agents in hand-to-hand combat. He is currently stationed in San Diego, where he is a Spanish and law academy instructor

Table of Contents

Prologue: On the Verge	xi
The Cowboy Days	1	(22)
A New Dilemma	23	(24)
The Bandit Team	47	(18)
The Art of Smuggling	65	(22)
A Partial Solution	87	(20)
Growing Sentiment	107	(12)
Training the Elite	119	(36)
The INS Disaster	155	(18)
Terror Sweeping Inland	173	(12)
Notes	185	(6)
Index	191