History
The Deming Station was formed in 1927 with
the assignment of two Inspectors to patrol the border by automobile and
horseback. These Inspectors had to patrol 135 miles of International Border
beginning with the Potrillo Mountains located 20 miles to the East of Columbus,
New Mexico and ending at the New Mexico/Arizona State line to the West.
In early 1941, the Border Patrol Station
was relocated 32 miles South of Deming at Columbus, New Mexico which is
3 miles North of the border. In January 1971, a Duty Post was established
in Deming with the main Station remaining in Columbus. The Deming Duty
office was manned by five Patrol Inspectors and one Supervisor while the
Columbus Station had nine Patrol Inspectors and a Station Senior Inspector.
These Inspectors were charged with enforcing the Immigration Law within
the boundaries of Luna County which encompasses 2,946 square miles and
includes 53 miles of International Border.
In 1973, the Columbus Border Patrol Station
was closed and all personnel were reassigned to Deming, New Mexico which
has remained the official Station to the present. In 1975, the Deming Station
was moved from it's old location at the Deming Airport to a new facilty
that was built to GSA specifications for approximately ten officers.
At the end of 1987, Grant and Catron Counties
were added the Deming Station's area of responsibility which brought the
area of operations to 13,844 square miles. To facilitate this increase
to the North, a Duty Post was established 53 miles North of Deming at Silver
City, New Mexico which is located in Grant County. Two Senior Patrol Agents
man this Post and provide necessary enforcement to this vast area which
encompasses the Gila Wilderness.
By 1993, manpower at the Deming, Station
had risen to 40 Border Patrol Agents which made it necessary to move to
a new 8,000 square foot facility which is now located at 1701 Columbus
Road and is located just South of Deming. During this period, the Deming
Station experienced a substantial increase in alien and narcotic apprehensions.
Two major factors which contributed to this increase were: severe economic
conditions in Mexico caused by the devaluation of the Mexican peso, and
the success of several long-term strategic Border Patrol operations conducted
on the border in adjacent areas. These operations such as "Hold the Line"
in El Paso and "Safeguard" in the Tucson Sector have caused a "push factor"
to the flank areas which include Deming. As a result of this increased
activity, personnel at the Deming Station was bolstered to 77 agents by
the summer of 1997. (More agents are expected to join the ranks of the
Deming Patrol in 1998)
challenge coin
The increase in manpower has allowed the
Station to maintain a strong presence along the International Boundary
and provide agents to "specialize" in other programs within the following
area of operations.
DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance
Education): In 1988, the Border Patrol began the first DARE program
in the Luna and Grant County areas. Two agents were assigned on a permanent
basis to provide fifth grade students an alternative to drug use. The Border
Patrol turned the program over to the Luna County Sheriff's Office in 1992
but has currently re-certified two agents as DARE instructors who are now assigned full time to the DARE program.
PROSECUTIONS: An increase
in organized smuggling made it necessary to create a Prosecutions Unit
so criminal aliens, alien and narcotic smugglers could be prosecuted by
the agents of the United States Border Patrol instead of relying on other
agencies. This unit is actively pursuing the prosecution (and Removal)
of Criminal Aliens from the United States and has broken previous station
records due to the increased traffic of alien smugglers.
The introduction of the IDENT System has made it easier to determine if
a Criminal Alien has been located in the field even when they present a
false name.)!!!
The DEMING AGENTS claimed bragging rights for Fiscal Year 97 where they apprehended 413 smuggling cases (23.2 percent of all El Paso Sector) which involved 450 Principals (29.8 percent) and apprehended 2,549 smuggled aliens (38.9 percent)!!!
BIKE PATROL: In June
of 1997 the Deming Border Patrol Bike Patrol was created. This team consists
of three full time agents as well as alternate riders. These agents conduct
City Patrol operations in the Deming area and routinely ride with Police
Officers from the City of Deming Police Department
SOUTHWESTERN NEW MEXICO
TASK FORCE: An agent is assigned to provide assistance to this multi-county
Task Force. This agent assists in investigations on a domestic level as
well as organized criminal operations. A recent one year undercover operation
involving a Task Force agent and a Border Patrol agent resulted in the
arrest of over sixty persons and stopped three main sources for cocaine
to the Silver City area.
K-9 CORPS: Two agents
are currently assigned to work with a Narcotic K-9 to provide a needed
tool to help the agents in the field detect the sophisticated compartments
that are created to hide the smuggler's contraband. These officers and
their partners are availabe to the other Federal, State and Local agencies
within this area of operations. These "agents" can also detect humans and
have been involved in a recent search and rescue operation where the K-9
agent and his partner located a two year old girl who had been abandoned
overnight in the desert by her deranged father.
EMT (Emergency Medical Technicians):
The large coverage area means that agents often work alone and in desolate
areas that are miles from any immediate medical assistance.The Deming Station
currently has two EMT personnel which allows the agents in the field to
know that experienced medical assistance is within a quick response time
frame.
AIR OPERATIONS: There are currently two full time pilots assigned to the Deming Station which aides the agents in the field with day to day operations.
NORTH COUNTIES UNIT: This
unit consists of one Supervisory Border Patrol Agent and three Border Patrol
Agents who provide added support to the Grant and Catron County areas.
This provides twenty four hour coverage for an area that smugglers and
aliens use to travel around the fixed checkpoints located on the main routes
of travel heading into the interior of the United States.
BORCAP Unit: The BORCAP
unit works apart from and in conjunction with the Prosecutions Unit and
works to formally Remove the Criminal Alien from the United States when
he/she has been processed through the Federal, State and Local Court or
Penal systems.
ATV Unit: The Deming
Border Patrol Station currently has two ATV's (All
Terrain Vehicles) that were seized in a failed attempt to smuggle marijuana
into the United States. These vehicles (and possibly more) will be
used to work trails as well as patrol the border in and around the main
entry points into the United States.
Horse Patrol:
Deming's horse patrol provides another tool to work in remote areas of the border as well as patrolling the busier entry points into the United States.
Area of Coverage
Deming Border Patrol Station
Copyright Mark Norris 1999,2000
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