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More volunteers facing federal charges for leaving water in the desert for dying migrants
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2018/1/24/1735687/-More-No-More-Deaths-volunteers-facing-charges-for-leaving-water-in-the-desert-for-dying-migrantsMore volunteers facing federal charges for leaving water in the desert for dying migrants
By Gabe Ortiz
Wednesday Jan 24, 2018 · 5:05 PM EST
Tucson, UNITED STATES: A memorial for those who died crossing the border from Mexico into the US is build in downtown Tucson, Arizona, 17 March 2006. The memorial has been organized by the No More Death Coallition an immigrant-friendly organization that works for justice along the US-Mexico border. The organization has been multiplying its efforts to raise awareness of border-crossing issues. Recently, two volunteers were arrested while they were providing help to illegal immigrants that were in distress following several days of walking in the desert. The two volunteers could face federal charges of smugling illegals into, US authorities said. The number of illegal immigrants in the US has grown to as many as 12 million people and they now account for about one in every twenty workers following a recent report by the Pew Hispanic Institute. AFP PHOTO / HECTOR MATA (Photo credit should read HECTOR MATA/AFP/Getty Images)
A 2006 memorial by No More Deaths and others to commemorate migrants.
More volunteers from a humanitarian group that leaves water and other aid in the searing desert for border crossers are now facing federal charges for their life-saving work. Last week, volunteer Scott Daniel Warren was arrested and charged with allegedly harboring undocumented immigrants, just hours after humanitarian and immigrant rights organizations released a report and videos that exposed Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents intentionally vandalizing and destroying jugs of water. Following Warren’s arrest, eight other No More Deaths volunteers now face federal misdemeanor charges. It’s clear what this really is, and it’s an effort to systemically dismantle and destroy a humanitarian group dedicated to saving migrant lives:
The Intercept and KVOA first reported Wednesday that Scott Daniel Warren and several other volunteers with No More Deaths, the humanitarian aid organization focused on “end[ing] death and suffering in the Mexico–US borderlands through civil initiative,” also face federal misdemeanor charges for their work.
The charges, according to court documents reviewed by TPM, are varied and include “operating a motor vehicle in a wilderness area,” “entering a national wildlife refuge without a permit,” and “abandonment of property.” Nine volunteers face misdemeanor charges in total, including Warren, who also faces the felony charge.
The “abandonment of property” charge refers to No More Deaths volunteers’ practice of leaving humanitarian supplies for migrants. In an affidavit filed Tuesday by a officer with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the officer claimed, referring to four of the defendants: “I asked if they had left the stash of water and food at Charlie Bell Well, to which they openly admitted they did.”
Meanwhile, video released by the organizations shows border patrol agents smiling as they destroy jugs of water. We are truly facing one of the darkest eras in U.S. history. According to a press release from No More Deaths, “the charges also come during a nationwide crackdown on immigrant rights organizers, while the Trump administration seeks to end DACA, and increase deportations, potentially forcing thousands more into the dangerous desert journey. No More Deaths published a report last week detailing how border patrol agents routinely sabotaged humanitarian aid left in the desert. The group, founded in 2004 to address rising deaths in the US-Mexico borderlands, continues to provide humanitarian aid in spite of the increase in surveillance and interference by federal agencies.”
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