U.S. News

Report: Border Guards Involved in 97 Deaths Since 2003

Deadly Force

Including six children.

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Mike Blake / Reuters

U.S. border guards have been involved in 97 deaths since 2003, according to a range of evidence brought together by The Guardian. The newspaper compiled settlement-payment data, court records, use-of-force logs, incident reports, and news articles to reach the figure, which it says shows a “pattern of violence” by agents of the Customs and Border Protection agency. The cases include that of Francisco Javier Dominguez Rivera, who was shot and killed “execution-style,” in the language of a wrongful-death complaint the government paid $850,000 to settle. The majority of the 97 died from bullet wounds, but the report listed other deadly incidents: “Pedestrians were run over by agents. Car chases culminated in crashes. Some have drowned, others died after they were pepper-sprayed, stunned with tasers or beaten.” At least 28 people who died were U.S. citizens and six children, between the ages of 12 and 16, were among the victims.

Read it at The Guardian