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Update from Pat Haggerty,
Texas State Representative
Fighting for homeland security
Representing the people of House District 78, El Paso, Texas is both an honor and a privilege for me. It also allows me to have a unique perspective on homeland security that I am able to share with my fellow lawmakers.
El Paso is one of the busiest border crossings in the United States. We are just across the border from Juarez, Mexico, a city of about 1.4 million people. Years before the threat of terrorists arose, our border agents were dealing with sophisticated networks of drug and immigrant smugglers. The investigations often resulted in some touchy dealings with Mexican border officials.
Through trial and error we have learned what works and what does not work when fighting those who would seek to violate our borders.
Our FBI chief for El Paso, Ralph Diaz, may have one of the toughest jobs in the country. He has spent more than half of his 27-year career in Texas and Arizona, and he has had success using video surveillance, wiretaps and communications on national and international cases. He has under his direction about 200 agents and support personnel from El Paso to the Midland-Odessa area. Tracking crime, including drug cartel activity, across the border can create sticky jurisdictional issues.
In our fight to control our border, we have to continually work to keep an open dialogue with Mexican authorities to make sure that they understand our concerns are for both El Paso and Juarez. Although there have been no terrorism related arrests along the Southwest border lately, we have to continue to be vigilant. We are aware that terrorists could use a drug cartels� smuggling network.
A mix of state, local, federal and private security officers work to protect our border city. And, as a member of the Texas Legislature, I have supported legislation designed to give all of these security providers the tools that they need to better protect our citizens. For example, after seven prisoners escaped from a Texas prison, using stolen security officer uniforms, they bluffed their way into a sporting goods store. There they stole several weapons and ammunition and killed a police officer during their escape. As a result of this incident I sponsored and passed House Bill 940, which makes it a criminal offense to impersonate a security officer. Six of the prisoners were later captured in Colorado, and the seventh committed suicide.
I also passed House Bill 565, which increases the penalties for assault of a security officer. Another bill that I passed allows commissioned security officers the ability to carry larger pepper spray devices once they have received training in the use of the spray.
I have also worked to pass legislation clarifying where and when security officers may carry their weapons. Some law enforcement groups had some concerns about the bill, and during negotiations we ran out of time, and the bill failed to pass. I hope to try again during the next session of the legislature.
Private security has proven an effective partner with law enforcement in fighting crime and helping to protect our border here in El Paso. I am proud to continue to fight to give all security providers, both private and public, the tools that they need to make Texas a safer place in which to live.
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