U.S. officials are increasingly scrutinous of what comes in and out of the country, which may make crossing the U.S. border a bit more complicated. While travelers should be warned that many of their rights go out the window in the hands of border protection, it is equally important to know the rights that they do have.
???Keith Konopa from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), an agency founded after 2001 that merged immigration, customs, and agriculture agencies into one comprehensive organization, explained its purpose.
???"We prevent the entry of terrorists and their weapons while facilitating legitimate travel and trade," Konopa said.
???Konopa said that CBP works to protect America by securing all U.S. borders against criminals and weapons of mass destruction, but allows people and goods to cross borders as quickly, orderly, and as fairly as possible.
???According to Konopa, the Buffalo area alone has 17 land border-crossings, four airports as well as seaports, and employs 1,200 uniformed CBP officers.
???Those native to the Buffalo area are often more accustomed to the proximity of the Canadian border, as well as the process one must undergo in order to exit and re-enter the U.S., Konopa said.
???Nevertheless, its important for citizens to brush up on their rights (and lack of rights) at the U.S. border, according to Konopa.
???For example, Konopa cited 19 United States Code 1467.
???"All persons, baggage, and merchandise arriving in Customs territory of the U.S. from outside of the U.S. are liable to inspection by a CBP officer," Konopa said.
???He described some of the means by which people or their vehicles may be searched and monitored.
???"Radiation portal monitors are our passive way to scan trucks, cargo, rail cars, etc. for radiation from nuclear devices, dirty bombs, special nuclear materials, natural sources and isotopes commonly used in medicine."
???To demonstrate the importance of and need for highly secure border crossings, Konopa recounted an incident from July 14, 2003, when a 30-year-old Jordanian man named Ra'ed Mansour al-Banna with a genuine Jordanian passport and valid U.S. visitor visa was turned away from the U.S. because of irregularities in his behavior and itinerary.
???Twenty months later, al-Banna was responsible for the single largest terrorist attack perpetrated in Iraq since the fall of the Sadaam Hussein regime by means of a suicide bombing, Konopa said.
???Following 9/11, the government implemented a special registration program entitled the National Security Entry Exit Registration System, or NSEERS. All non-immigrants who are nationals of Syria, Iran, Iraq and Sudan are subject to registration at the port of entry, as well as anyone who CBP determines, according to secret criteria, is a threat to national security.
???"No one has the right to be represented by an attorney at the border unless he or she has become the focus of a criminal investigation and has been taken into custody," said attorney James Eiss.
???Though the U.S. Constitution protects people and their houses, papers and effects from searches without probable cause, on March 30, 2004, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Fourth Amendment must be balanced against the right of the U.S. government to protect its territorial integrity through unsuspicious searches of vehicles at the U.S. border, Eiss said.
???Eiss said that these warrantless CBP vehicular searches might occur within a reasonable distance (100 air miles) from any external boundary of the U.S.
???A person does have more rights to privacy with regards to their body, and thus a border officer may not conduct a cavity search of a person without reasonable cause, according to Eiss.
???"People have the right not to endure false arrest and excessive force," Eiss said.
???Eiss demonstrated one of the issues brought up involving border rights.
???"In 2005, five Muslim-American U.S. citizens brought suit in federal district court to challenge their detentions at the border upon returning to the U.S. from an Islamic religious conference in Toronto, Ontario," Eiss said.
???According to Eiss, the five Americans were detained for five to six hours each, and were questioned at the Lewiston-Queenston Bridge, patted down, fingerprinted, and photographed.
???"The court found the government's argument persuasive, and the searches were justified by CBP intelligence that the conference served as a meeting point for terrorists," Eiss said. "It made no difference that the people being detained were U.S. citizens."
???Eiss observed that the case raised concerns regarding the First Amendment and its protection of freedom of association and religion.
???Attorney Danielle Rizzo views this case as blatant religious stereotyping.
???"There is definitely profiling going on-that happened with the five people at the border," Rizzo said. "They [CBP] profiled them because of their religion."
???Rizzo believes that the use of profiling might be useful in some situations, but that it also creates problems like the detainment of completely harmless U.S. citizens.
???Rizzo, like Eiss, mentioned the new policy that CBP may confiscate any personal electronic device at the border to obtain information.
???"It's hard for lawyers, because your client's information is in your laptop and you are required by law to keep it confidential," Rizzo said.
???Those intending to cross the border should be prepared with identification and proper paperwork to avoid trouble with officials.
???To enter the U.S. as a U.S. citizen, a traveler must show proof of citizenship by providing a U.S. passport or passport card, a U.S. birth certificate, or a certificate of U.S. citizenship or naturalization, Eiss said.
???Non-citizens entering the country as a foreign national must show proof of citizenship, such as a passport, and proof of admissibility to the U.S., including a valid U.S. visa, unless exempt or benefiting from automatic visa revalidation.
???Individuals traveling from Canada with other family members or within a group of friends cannot carry over $10,000 among the group.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
