Blood in the dust: Border Patrol agent guns down immigrant…
Put forth on April 25, 2007 by XicanoPwr
Posted in Censorship, Eliminationism, Google, Human Rights, Immigration, La Migra, Mexico, Nativism, Raza, YouTube
Warning; Viewer Discretion Advised. Graphic images may be disturbing to some viewers. The surveillance video obtained by the Union-Tribune does show the actual footage of the shooting from the surveillance video that was leaked of the deadly shooting of Ramiro Gamez Acosta, an immigrant, by a Border Patrol agent. Acosta, 20, was blasted in the chest by a Border Patrol agent with an M-4 carbine. The Mexican government is calling for an investigation.
[Note: 5/04/07 - Unfortunately, YouTube I mean Google has decided to Censor this video and has taken it down. That is OK I have another copy of it. I will put it back up, soon.]
According to the Union-Tribune, it was a case of “self-defense.”
Surveillance video of a deadly shooting last month of a would-be illegal migrant by a Border Patrol agent is prompting calls by the Mexican government for an investigation, although it shows the agent apparently firing in self-defense.
Self-defense from what? This type of behavior seems to be normal, recently Agent Nicholas Corbett was charged with first-degree murder of Francisco Dominguez-Rivera, of Puebla, Mexico, who was unarmed at the border in January. Corbett was also charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter and negligent homicide. His excuse - he claimed he “feared for his life,” however, Corbett’s account didn’t match witness testimony or forensic evidence.
The present racial crisis in this country carries within it powerful destructive ingredients that may soon erupt into an uncontrollable explosion.
Update:
The autopsy report that was released today revealed that Acosta died from a single gunshot wound to the chest. According to recent reports, the incident occurred when Border Patrol encounter a group of individuals who allegedly began attacking them with rocks. I use the term a “group of individuals” because there is conflicting reports in the media on what actually occurred. According to Greg Gross of Union-Tribune:
The incident occurred during a violent encounter between agents and illegal border-crossers, about a mile west of the Calexico border crossing.
However, local NBC affiliate KYMA-TV reported:
Agents say a group of suspected smugglers began attacking them with large rocks.
Agents believe Gamez Acosta was one of the smugglers.
The Mexican government called for an investigation after Pablo Arnaud, Mexican consulate in Calexico, saw the full version of the incident on the Internet. According to Border Patrol supervisor David Kim, the FBI will investigate the shooting.
On the video, it doesn’t appear to show that the Border Patrol agent is being attacked, however you do see Acosta cock his arm back, which at that time the agent fired at him. Even more disturbing, after Acosta was gunned down, it seems somebody in the Calexico station moved abruptly moved the surveillance camera to the left. Was this done on purpose? There many question that need to be answered.
This post is cross-posted over at Scholars & Rogues, a new group blog I participate in.
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This is the blog of Edmundo "XicanoPwr" Rocha, a social worker, an activist, freelance writer and founder and editor of The Sanctuary. My interests include: immigration reform, critical race theory and it's interaction with equality/inequality and freedom/oppression as they relate to the experiences of people of color in the Americas.
Para Justicia y Libertad is a Latino-centered political blog focusing on the humanistic perspective of politics, history, and society as they relate to the Latina/o community throughout Texas and the United States.
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Someone should take the U.S. to The Hague on this. Really.
Here’s another article on repression of immigrants, broader in scope, scary:
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/042407C.shtml
Shoot a drug dealer in the rear–go to prison.
Murder a guy throwing a rock. That is okay.
The agent has a gun.
The other guy raises his hand to throw something.
WHO IS THE STUPID ONE?
So what? The border patrolman is supposed to be hit in the head with a rock by someone crossing our border illegally and not protect himself? Sorry. Doesn’t wash. I am Democrat and I even I am tired of our borders being porous and open. I also think it is hysterical that Mexico has one of the tightest borders in the Americas because they don’t want illegals crossing into the southern part of their country. But of course they expect our border to be wide open.
I am tired of their arrogance. I am tired of criminals coming across my country’s broder and wielding rocks at cops.
I’m a definite Liberal - and if the shooting was not justified, there’s no question or doubt the agent(s) should be prosecuted. Hopefully, computer enhancement may be able to show us whether he was in real jeopardy, or if the suspects hand was empty - and that should tell the tale.
That said, I resent the intrusion of the Mexican Government into internal American affairs. If it was not in self-defense, we have a legal system here to take care of it, and if we can imprison two border patrol agents who were guilty of nothing but doing their jobs - we can certainly convict one if he indeed committed murder.
What is the penalty for an American attempting to sneak into Mexico? I believe it is a very harsh penalty, and I doubt an American “suspect” would be treated nearly as humane as the US attempts to treat those caught sneaking into America.
Finally, there are many of us that do support a fair and humane immigration policy, but when the difference is intentionally blurred between legal and illegal immigrants - it leaves a sour taste in everyone’s mouth. I am old enough to remember the days of Ceasar Chavez - and if I recall, he shares my attitude and philosophy on the entire matter.
He was for legal immigration - and an avid opponent of illegal immigration, and he made it clear as to his rationale in support of his stance. His rationale is as valid today as it was those many years ago when legal immigrants had to fight to receive fair wages.
I am no fan of excess physical violence by law enforcement, and know that far too many LEO’s are quite capable of brutality and murder.
A thrown rock, especially at the close range shown, can be directly lethal, induce unconsciousness, or functionally disable an individual. Baseball players have been killed or severely injured by a thrown ball.
If Acosta was, or appeared to be throwing a rock, the agent had no other course of action. This video certainly gives that appearence.
So…..what did the BP agent do wrong?? I don’t see it.
sorry to say it but it looked clean. The officer didn’t have time to determine if it was a rock or a Molotov or whatever. He is trained to do what he did. He fired once and then I’m sure called for an ambulance.
If an armed man points a gun at you and tells you to stop and you attempt to attack him then I don’t see holding him responsible for your actions.
It looked to me as if Acosta was about to hit the officer. So the officer shot him. What is he supposed to do? Duke it out with the guy? I wouldn’t. If I were armed, I would use my weapon. Wouldn’t you?
Until I saw the video I suspected the agent may have been wrong, now it’s not so clear. To all the others out there. Yes, a rock can be a very dangerous item at such close distance. The agent also had several other who were compliant and were on the ground. If this ILLEGAL (criminal) was allowed to hit the agent with the rock and subdue him, then the agents weapon or weapons are in the hands of known CRIMINALS. The agent had no back up and at least 3 others who complied by laying prone on the ground. It is unfortunate this had to happen but by the looks of teh video he was justified. We as LEO’s are taught to shoot to KILL, you cannot use your weapon to fire a warning shot, this is not a movie where you go home after the scene. At least a REAL AMERICAN CITIZEN went home that night and believ me he did not sleep after such a tramatic incident, he will never be the same.
A large stone hurled at 75 miles an hour can be just as deadly. Put yourself in the Border Guard’s place; what would you do — just stand there? He defended himself and the United States from a mexican thug bold enough to assault an armed law enforcement officer. Imagine what the illegal would do to an unarmed American civilian.
If you look at the video and if he did have a rock, it looks like that he was going to through something at the suv to the right of the immigrant and not at the officer. It doesn’t make sense that this guy would try to throw a rock at the officer when the officer is 10 feet away with an M-4 carbine pointed at him. Another thing that everybody should consider, when he shot the immigrant did you notice how the camera was moved so that you can not see anymore of the situation. That doesn’t make sense to me, if one of your brother officers is involved in a shooting and you saw what went down wouldn’t you want to keep the camera on his position in case somebody try to get the drop on him. The only reason I see that the camera was moved is that there may be a unwritten code with the immigration police that says cover up your buddies mistakes. Remember dead men tell no tales, so what if the guy was still alive after the shooting. The last thing that anyone wants or needs is a live witness. I wonder if theres a time stamp for how soon an ambulance was called out to the incident. That camera being moved, that camera being moved tells alot about how justice is being served to human beings coming to america.
There are a lot of questions to be answered here. The video itself does not appear to show the agent being attacked - it looks like maybe Acosta is getting ready to throw a rock at the vehicle? Could the agent be sure of that? What we see is disturbing, but I’m wondering if what we don’t see vindicates the agent or convicts him.
That camera hanging a hard left is an interesting detail. If somebody is manning the cam, then you’d think that there’s video out there that tells us more.
I guess I’m saying that what we have here isn’t conclusive, and I respect your restraint. We need to pursue a conclusion, though.
#5 (William Cormier): I have written on my own experiences as an “Illegal alien” in Mexico (link) … the truth is damn little happens. Other than some difficulties opening a bank account (which meant I did all my transactions in cash, like 75% of all Mexicans do anyway) not a thing was done… as a matter of fact, I’ve mentioned to Mexican consular officials that I was once an “illegal alien” in their country and they just shrug.
I wonder if poster # 11 is one of those people who fussed about the Mexican government’s warnings to would be border crossers NOT to throw rocks at BP agents. The infamous Mexican comic book was a cause celebre back in mid 2005 (link) for those worried by immigration and who can’t make the obvious connection between corporate agriculture and migration.
FUCK la migra. FUCK you, Clint the Democrat and your fear of the “arrogant” Mexican. FUCK the uneducated white talker with the fake history book in his brain. FUCK this border of convenience. open when the USA needs slaves, closed when subscribers to the white power structure fear the pale census numbers falling, or not being able to control the (absence of) culture.
the age of the world being controlled by the Euro-White sphere of power is dying. fine, kill some mexicanos on the border. get all self righteous. lock up the meat packers and the children. you cannot deport all of the Brown™, and you cannot make a pretend line in the sand where my people have been migrating back and forth for hundreds and hundreds of years. time is on the side of those who are open to the flow, not those who hunch down and armor themselves with the fragile shell of fear.
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