Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin - Federation of American ...

ing to pay local people as much as $1,500 per person
to drive illegal immigrants from the Reservation
to the Phoenix metropolitan area. They also pay for
storage, food, water, shelter, and the transportation
of illegal narcotics. A person who has access
to a six passenger vehicle could receive more than
$7,000.00 (tax free) for making an eight hour round
trip. For many people who live on the Reservation,
that is a lot of money. While no one knows the exact
amount of personal income that comes to some
tribal members as a result of providing these services,
one study found that the annual total may
exceed $13,795,000. 21
The Desert People live in close-knit communities.
For them, the participation of tribal members
in smuggling and other such activities presents
an immense challenge because the Tribal Police
are sometimes called upon to arrest people who
they know very well. Even so, they work closely
with federal, state, and county authorities to enforce
the law and stem the flow of illegal migrants
and smuggling on the Reservation. 22
During fiscal year 2002, the Tohono O’odham
Nation was forced to spend nearly $7,000,000 to
deal with the manifestations of illegal migration.
During this period, 85 illegal immigrants died on
the Reservation causing $266,050 to be spent on
autopsies and other related costs. At the same
time, Tribal Police dealt with 140 drug smuggling
cases at a cost of $642,880; twelve immigrant related
homicides costing $260,000 to investigate;
towed nearly 4,000 abandoned immigrant vehicles
at a cost of $180,000, and provided medical
emergency treatment to immigrants at a cost of
more than $500,000. 23
Although the Tohono O’odham Nation receives
some assistance from the federal government,
the massive numbers of illegal entrants to the
Reservation have made it necessary for the Desert
People to divert scarce resources from other pressing
needs including support to schools, economic
development, and infrastructure improvements.
Law Enforcement Issues
While most tribal members want to put an end to
crime on the Reservation, many are uncomfortable
with the presence of large numbers of non-O’odham
law enforcement personnel in their communities.
Tribal members tell their leaders that some-
times they are inconvenienced, or even harassed
by these personnel. They also point out that many
federal law enforcement officers and agents seem to
know little about the traditional ways of the Desert
People. They call upon the Federal Government and
other governments to respect the sovereignty of the
Tohono O’odham Nation. 24
Tribal Chairman, Ned Norris, Jr., in written testimony
to a Joint Subcommittee of the U.S. House
of Representatives in April 2008, noted that the
Tohono O’odham Nation has worked closely with
the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to find alternatives
to walls along the border. He argues that
viable alternatives include vehicle barriers, towers,
check-points, and camera-radar systems. He believes
that these methods can effectively improve
security without causing the environmental damage
and personal inconveniences associated with
the construction of a wall. The Tohono O’odham are
particularly concerned about the impacts of a border
wall on migratory wildlife such as the Mexican
jaguar. Chairman Norris now calls upon the federal
government to repeal the authority given to the
Secretary of Homeland Security to wave the limitations
of the Environmental Protection Act in the interests
of security. 25
In recent years, the Border Patrol has sought to expose
agents who patrol on the Reservation to Tohono
O’odham culture. It also employs a community relations
officer who works closely with tribal members
to insure effective communications. 26 Nevertheless,
the training that most Border Patrol personnel receive
about the culture of the Desert People remains
fairly light. Given the complex nature of the current
situation, it is clear that law enforcement personnel
assigned to work on the Reservation would benefit
from training designed to immerse them in the traditions,
values, attitudes, and beliefs of the Desert
People.
Initiatives to Deal with Illegal
Immigration and Smuggling
Tribal police, as well as federal and state law enforcement
agencies, are making strides in finding
effective ways to stop the flow of illegal migrants and
drugs through the Reservation. Among the more
important of these initiatives are the employment
of Native American ‘Shadow Wolf’ trackers, and the
training of law enforcement personnel in the gathering,
analysis and use of actionable intelligence by
42 Military Intelligence