Posted on 06/07/2004 6:29:30 AM PDT by Theodore R.
South Texas ranch at center of storm over effort to stem illegal immigration
HEBBRONVILLE (AP) — A South Texas couple says the U.S. Border Patrol hasn't been much help in stemming the flow of illegal immigrants who make their way into the country across their ranch land.
After continuing to find broken fences, food containers and other messes from migrants, Joe and Betty Lou Sutton last year called on Ranch Rescue, an Arizona-based group of armed vigilantes who believe citizens should protect the U.S.-Mexican border themselves.
Now, the Suttons' ranch is at the center of a federal court case alleging abuses against migrants.
Jury selection begins today in a trial for Ranch Rescue volunteer Casey Nethercott. The Douglas, Ariz., man is accused of pistol-whipping two Salvadorans who attempted to cross the Suttons' land.
Fatima Leiva and Edwin Mancia were crossing the ranch, reportedly on their way to family and jobs in Houston, when Nethercott's dog attacked them and Nethercott hit Mancia with the back of his handgun, injuring him, prosecutors said.
Nethercott has pleaded innocent to felony counts of assault, unlawful detention and unlawful possession of a weapon.
A civil trial naming the Suttons and Ranch Rescue among the defendants is scheduled for August.
Ranch Rescue is one of at least three citizen patrol groups who say they are patriots fighting what they call a homeland invasion. They have been called to private lands more frequently because of Border Patrol crackdowns on more populated portions of the border.
The Suttons defend their decision to call Ranch Rescue, as immigrants are still making their way through their land, Betty Lou Sutton said.
During a recent tour of her ranch, Betty Lou Sutton kicked aside mesquite branches to reveal one of the campsites.
The evidence was clear: empty cans of sardines and beer, an empty bag of corn chips, a punched-out blister pack of baby aspirin. Dangling shreds of plastic bags showed an attempt at tenting against a rare South Texas rain.
"We've found them taking baths in the cattle trough and shampooing their hair," she said. "Cattle don't like soap. They stole our chicken and eggs too, so we don't raise them anymore."
"Most of them are Mexicans and they're damn good people, but at least they ought to do it legally," Joe Sutton said.
"It's just the fact that it's trespassing. That, in effect, is a crime. It is against the law of the state of Texas."
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On the Net:
Ranch Rescue: www.ranchrescue.com
What the article does not point out is that Ranch Rescue is doing the job that Border Patrol is supposed to do, but does not.
BTTT
"Will it come to shoot, shovel, shut up?"
Yes it will thanks to the feds.
Treating taxpaying citizens like criminals is not the answer. What good is a border patrol if it cannot patrol our borders? Private citizens should not have their property trespassed and vandalized without assistance from local and federal authorities. ISN'T THAT WHAT WE PAY TAXES FOR? WHERE IS OUR PROTECTION?
In answer to your question of were your "protection" is : Your protection is busy trying to not run afoul of politician mandated political correctness & utter nonsense from activist judges to secure the border .
It will eventually devolve down to the 3S method "shoot,shovel & shut up" about the illegals .
Things wont change anytime soon at least in my estimation not until we have a couple more Sept 11,2001 scale attacks were the bad guys are determined after the fact to have come across the borders illegally.
For that matter, why aren't we using our National Guard to guard our nation?
People get more trouble for exercising the Constitutional Rights than they do invading the United States.
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