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'Army' to Patrol Southwest Border?

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Sunday, August 17, 2003

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COMING TO AMERICA
'Army' to patrol southwest border?
Newly formed citizen's group threatens suit against Ariz. officials over
arrest

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Posted: August 17, 2003
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Jon Dougherty

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© 2003 WorldNetDaily.com
A newly formed citizen's group based in Missouri has threatened to raise
an "army" of volunteers to bring to the U.S. southwest border in Arizona in a
bid to shut down illegal immigration from Mexico.

Unarmed members of local citizen's border group watch over group of
illegals in Arizona while waiting for Border Patrol to arrive

At the same time, says Keith French, a spokesman for newly incorporated
U.S. Special Service, his organization will sue the Yuma County, Ariz. Sheriff's
Office and county attorney's office for what he said was their unlawful arrest
of Matthew Hoffman, 23, of Yuma, and Alexander Dumas of California.

According to a report in the Yuma Sun, Hoffman and Dumas have been charged
with unlawfully detaining six illegal aliens until Border Patrol agents arrived
to pick them up.

The paper said the men intercepted the illegals in Gadsden, Ariz., located
southwest of Yuma along the Arizona-Mexico border.
''We have adopted these men,'' French said in an e-mail to county
authorities. ''People are allowed to arrest someone they see commit a crime. And
entering illegally is a crime.''

Hoffman and Dumas face six counts of aggravated assault, five counts of
unlawful imprisonment and one count of conspiracy to commit unlawful
imprisonment, said the Sun. But the U.S. Special Service accused the sheriff's
department and county prosecutor's office of violating the civil rights of both
men for doing what is allowable under the law.

Sheriff Ralph Ogden said in a statement Monday that citizens may assist in
the apprehension of persons violating the law. But, he said he wanted to ''warn
any individual assuming that responsibility that such arrests must be done in
accordance with applicable state and federal laws and that failure to do so may
result in their being charged with a violation of the law.''

Detaining anyone against their will, even if they have broken the law, is
a violation of the law, Ogden said. Such behavior goes past what is allowable
under citizen's arrest procedures.

Hoffman and Dumas, who remain in custody over the Aug. 1 incident, used
firearms and handcuffs to detain the illegals, the Arizona Daily Star reported.

The arrests haven't deterred the group. French said in his statement his
group was examining federal laws regarding the formation of private citizens'
patrol groups when the two men were arrested. In fact, he said the case is an
ideal one to announce the U.S. Special Service.

French said his group is negotiating with Yuma county officials to release
the men. If not, he hinted the organization would seek alternate means to free
the men, the Sun reported.
''Sometimes you've got to fight fire with fire,'' he told the paper.
''They can take that however the hell they want.''

French says plans are underway to travel to Arizona and examine areas for
a possible base camp. The Sun said the group most likely would locate its camp
near Tucson, which is northeast of Yuma.

French also said his group is likely to patrol both federal land and
public property, unlike other groups which largely stick to private property.
''The United States government's land is the people's land,'' French told
the paper. ''And we will function on that property.''

Meanwhile, the Daily Star said Mexican officials were demanding an
investigation into border groups.

The Star also said French had been in contact with Jack Foote, head of the
Texas-based chapter of Ranch Rescue, and Chris Simcox, owner of the Tombstone
Tumbleweed newspaper and founder of Civil Homeland Defense.

In a separate interview, French told WorldNetDaily he and ''chief agent''
Bryan Lee, of California, would be leaving ''soon'' for on-site inspections of
Yuma and Cochise Counties. But, he added, no date had been set.
''We will then take our information back to the council to discuss both
operations,'' he said, which will mean ''physical security patrol agents'' and
involve "another 'division' that does not [currently] exist.

French would not divulge the number of volunteer ''agents'' currently
involved with the U.S. Special Service, but he said they would be deployed from
a base camp, where officials would be in constant contact with members in the
field.

Agents in the field will be armed, but French did not say how. They would
also carry radios.

Other members will guard the camp and will be armed with rifles and
handguns, French said.
''The patrols will patrol, the guards will guard. There's a lot to this,''
he said. ''It will be set up as a camp, the vehicles are marked patrol vehicles,
all Special Service Guards and Agents patrolling will be uniformed, and all
business conducted in a professional manner.''

In recent months, however, members of so-called citizen's border groups
have been under increased scrutiny by local, state and federal officials. Some
have been arrested for allegedly improperly detaining illegal immigrants.

As WorldNetDaily reported, Casey Nethercott and Hank Conner, members of
the group Ranch Rescue, were arrested in March in Hebbronville, Texas, for
allegedly pistol-whipping two illegal aliens they helped detain.

Also, Glenn Spencer, head of American Border Patrol, a group that used
electronic means to detect and report illegal alien entry, was arrested earlier
this month on charges he improperly discharged a weapon in a residential area
near his home in Sierra Vista, Ariz.

When asked if his organization feared they too could be arrested, French
was undeterred.
''First and foremost, Special Service has its own regulations, codes,
by-laws and laws. All are under the Constitution of the United States. S.S.
agents, guards, and officers are not permitted to be arrested,'' he said. ''They
will walk the line according to [United States Code] and Special Service, not
according to any county, city, or state code that violates the rights given
under the 'law of the land,' the U.S. Constitution.''
''Special Service carries a zero tolerance policy and will not permit any
branch of government to seize, or likewise take into their custody any S.S.
agents, guards or officers,'' he told WorldNetDaily.
''This is considered insurrection against the civil forces of the United
States and we will hold those accountable who try.''

He said the group would attempt to work with law enforcement personnel
locally, but could not promise full cooperation.
''Harassment at any level will not be tolerated. It is that simple,'' he
said.