Valley Non-Profits Demand Answers from Border Patrol about Hurricane Evacuations in Federal Lawsuit

Press Release

South Texas Civil Rights Project and Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid Seek to Question High Level Border Patrol Official on Policy of Keeping Checkpoints Open During Hurricane Evacuations and of Checking IDs of People Seeking Assistance

On behalf of the members of Proyecto Juan Diego, Proyecto Digna, San Felipe Community Church, and La Union del Pueblo Entero (LUPE), STCRP and TRLA filed a petition seeking information from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) on its policy during hurricane evacuations in the Rio Grande Valley.

On May 13, 2008, Hidalgo County emergency management officials in McAllen, Texas, undertook a simulated evacuation drill and CBP agents rehearsed verifying the immigration status of mock evacuees. In response to questions about the incident, a spokesman for CBP stated, “It’s business as usual at the checkpoints. We’ll still check everybody.” These comments and CBP’s actions at the practice evacuation drill immediately triggered an outcry from local residents and officials. Soon after, Ronald D. Vitiello, the Chief Patrol Agent in the Rio Grande Valley, released an open letter to the public stating Border Patrol’s primary role in evacuations would be the safeguard of life. But, the letter fell short of disavowing any future immigration status checks.

“To prevent a Hurricane Katrina type catastrophe in the Valley, residents must know what is going to happen when an evacuation is called. Will the open Falfurrias checkpoint hold up traffic making it pointless to flee north? Will families be risking their loved ones’ deportation by boarding county buses? We must have answers to make sure our members and the residents of the Valley find safety during a hurricane,” said LUPE Texas Director Juanita Valdez Cox.

“The Rio Grande Valley is the only area in the entire United States where Border Patrol has publicly announced a policy of checking immigration status during hurricane evacuations,” stated STCRP attorney Corinna Spencer-Scheurich. “If this is really the plan, then the loss of life as people stay behind could be catastrophic. If this is the plan, then people have the right to know and to ask the court to stop such a discriminatory and dangerous practice.”

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Press Conference Details

Who:

Juanita Valdez-Cox, La Union del Pueblo Entero
Corinna Spencer-Scheurich, South Texas Civil Rights Project
Eric Rodriguez, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid
Representatives of Proyecto Juan Diego, Proyecto Digna, and San Felipe Community Church

Where:

La Union del Pueblo Entero (LUPE) meeting hall
Northwest corner of Bus. 83 and Cesar Chavez
San Juan, Texas

When:

10:00am, Wednesday July 9, 2008

Contact: Corinna Spencer-Scheurich
South Texas Civil Rights Project
Equal Justice Works Attorney

South Texas Civil Rights Project and Texas RioGrande Legal Aid have filed a lawsuit today requesting that the Federal Court order Customs and Border Patrol to give information about its plan to check immigration documents and to keep checkpoints open during a hurricane evacuation. The lawsuit is filed on behalf of La Union del Pueblo Entero (LUPE), Proyecto Juan Diego, Proyecto Digna, and San Felipe Community Church.