Border Patrol Agent

Border Patrol Agent

Oscar

Charleston, SC

Male, 31

Spent a bit over four years (2006-2010) serving as a Border Patrol Agent in Tucson Sector, AZ: the busiest sector in the country. Worked numerous positions, and spent the last year and a half operating/instructing ground radar installations. Duties included: field patrols, transport, processing, control room duties, transportation check, checkpoint operations, static watch duties, etc.

SubscribeGet emails when new questions are answered. Ask Me Anything!Show Bio +

Share:

Ask me anything!

Submit Your Question

385 Questions

Share:

Last Answer on November 08, 2016

Best Rated

is there any way to know about a family member that was cought crosing the border ?

Asked by brittany12 over 12 years ago

There is no release of information from a station or sector level.  An illegal immigrant is only kept in custody at a station for less than 24 hours (often not more than 12).  As a safety precaution we do not release information/names/locations of individuals in custody.

A person can contact the Mexican/Other consulate within 24-36 hours and they should keep a record of people returned to their country.  In the event that an illegal immigrant is sent to jail or prosecuted they will eventually get a chance to make a phone call/contact relatives etc. (like a normal incarcerated/prosecuted person).

 

Hello I'm 14 and I'm going to go on vacation with my uncle and aunt to Mexico for a few days do I need a Notarized letter from my parents I have a passport by the way.

Asked by David Chavez about 12 years ago

No idea.  That's a customs question, so I'm not sure.  Mexican customs is pretty lax.

can a person that was caught crossing the border illegaly pay a fine and get released to a family member living in the United States

Asked by erika over 11 years ago

No.

does being a border patrol affect spending time with your family?

Asked by lynn over 12 years ago

Short answer: yes.  Law enforcement work of any type has statistically been very hard on families and relationships.  Unfortunately law enforcement officers have a much higher rate of substance abuse, suicide, etc.  It's a high stress line of work, working long hours, and dealing with the bottom of society.  A lot of people live fine, normal lives - but the numbers are pretty bad.  High rate of divorce is common.  I do think the BP might be better than some local LEO work.  I was away for an average of 11 hours a day, so if you have loved ones or family, it can be very taxing.

I am in the application process for USBP, but ultimate career goal is to join a US Marshal Regional Fugitive Task Force, as I know the southwest pacific one is in LA. How easy would it be to transition over? Do you guys ever work with the Marshals?

Asked by futureLEO about 12 years ago

Never worked with the US Marshals.  You could apply direct to the Marshals though, unless you don't believe you have the resume to do so.

If you did weed once when you where 17 will that stop you from becomeing a border patrol agent

Asked by Mr.305 over 12 years ago

That question will come up during your background investigation and/or polygraph test.  I'm not sure what effect a positive answer would have in that situation.  It is something that will come up for any government job which involves any level of security clearance though, and I doubt it can help.

Unfortunately in certain lines of work - those things you do on purpose or by accident as a young person can come back and bite you in the ass.  I know several of my fellow agents had smoked weed before joining the BP, but I don't know if they answered truthfully during their background investigations.

Personally I think weed should be legalized, but I imagine it might depend on the person doing your background investigation.

I guess I'm not really clear on this but do agents routinely patrol their sectors looking for illegals (like cops on a beat) or are they directed to areas when motion sensors are tripped or suspects are reported, etc.

Asked by C L Smith over 12 years ago

All of the above.  While it depends a lot on terrain and your local conditions, you have a large array of operations.

In our area we had a few "X"s...these are static locations watching a particular point of interest.  You then had patroling units, which would actively be cutting for sign (footprints, debris, trash, spoor) which would indicate a recent group or vehicles.  You also had static ground-sweeping radar.  You had bike units which would operate further in from the border.  You also had occasional aviation units when we could spare them.

In addition to this you have a large number of magnetic and seismic sensors which would register back at the station.  During the day, we also had a Horse Patrol unit which specialized in rougher terrain (they were quite good up in the more mountainous regions).

Now, in some places like Nogales (nicknamed "Nogadishu" for the level of violence about a decade ago) it's an entirely different situation, as the USBP there is operating inside a city etc.  Likewise, some stations operate solely in the mountains and operate heavily by airlifting agents around in helicopters etc.

It varies immensely by station.