Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Affirms the Convictions Against Agents Ramos and Compean

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has affirmed the convictions against Border Patrol Agents Ramos and Compean for counts 1 through 5 and counts 11 and 12. The Court reversed and vacated counts 6 through 12 because the court determined the Border Patrol investigation was not an "official proceeding" within the meaning of the Statute.

I am shocked by this prosecution and decision and truly question my faith in the criminal justice system and my career in law enforcement. I know there are a few people, including Chief Aguilar and those who put their career before their honor, who argue Agents Ramos and Compean shot an unarmed and fleeing suspect in the back and failed to report the shooting. However, even if there was substantial evidence to prove none of the agents on scene verbally reported the shooting to the supervisors on scene and none of the supervisors on scene were aware of the shooting, I am confident the U.S. Attorney’s Office still would have prosecuted this case for several reasons, a few of which are cited below:

1. They made their entire case with the testimony of a career drug smuggler who illegally entered the United States and subsequently fled to Mexico to avoid capture;

2. They intentionally mislead the jury to believe the drug smuggler was not armed by irrationally arguing that no weapon was found (why would it be found if it was in Mexico);

3. They coerced and intimidated other Border Patrol Agents to testify against Agents Ramos and Compean by threatening them with prosecution (those same agents were later terminated by the Border Patrol for changing their stories);

4. They willingly mislead the jury by preventing pertinent facts about the smuggler’s career from being admitted into evidence;

5. They charged Agents Ramos and Compean with a law that was never intended to be used against law enforcement officers.

Read the decision.

Heat Wave Safety Tips from NOAA

Please review the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s article about Heat Wave Safety Tips (click the title above). The article also presents NOAA's National Weather Service Heat Index (see below) and explains how to understand the Heat Index.

There is an important note about the Heat Index table that must be considered when reading it: HI values were devised for shady, light wind conditions; therefore exposure to full sunlight can increase HI values by up to 15°F. In addition, strong winds with very hot, dry air can be extremely dangerous.

As Border Patrol Agents, two recommendations for preventing heat stress are out of our control: wear lightweight clothing to allow free air movement and wear light-colored clothing to reflect the heat and sunlight. As we all know, the Border Patrol uniform is dark colored which means it absorbs heat and sunlight; and the new rough-duty uniform is extremely thick which means it prevents free air movement. When the body armor is worn in addition to the thick, dark-colored rough-duty uniform, it will drastically affect your body temperature and your ability to keep your body temperatures normal.

If you know you regularly track groups on foot then take the time to check the heat index each day and be prepared to take the proper precautions to protect yourself and your partners in the field.

NOAA's National Weather Service Heat Index:

"The FBI - Antennae of Death"

"The FBI" is a show that aired in the 1970's. This particular episode, "The Antennae of Death" is based on the true story about Border Patrol Inspectors Theodore L. Newton Jr. and George F. Azrak (names, locations, etc. were changed, as indicated at the end of the video). Thanks to Harold Newton, brother of Theodore Newton, we received a copy of a link to this show after Harold spent time searching for the show ever since he first viewed it in the 70's. According to Harold, this episode aired on November 29, 1970. Click on the above title to view the video.

To read more about Border Patrol Insectors Newton and Azrak, click here: