Rep. Giffords’ tunneling provision goes forward

By Jonathon Shacat
Herald/Review
Published/Last Modified on Wednesday, Dec 19, 2007 - 06:22:33 am MST

Font Size

BISBEE — A provision by U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords to ensure that tunneling under the Arizona-Mexico border is criminalized has received approval by the House of Representatives.

Giffords, whose district includes a 114-mile border with Mexico, said tunnels are a serious threat to border security and the people who dig them must be punished.

“We must arrest and prosecute these criminals to the fullest extent of the law, and that is exactly what my legislation demands,” she said in a press release.

Under her provision, anyone who knowingly constructs or finances the construction of a tunnel that crosses the international border between the United States and another country shall be fined and imprisoned for up to 20 years. Also, it calls for additional criminal penalties for using a tunnel to smuggle illegal immigrants, goods, controlled substances, weapons of mass destruction or terrorists.

The provision was approved by the House on Monday night. The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration. If the Senate makes any changes, it will be sent back to the House for reconciliation. Then it will go to the president for approval, according to C.J. Karamargin, communications director for Giffords.

During a phone interview, Glenn Spencer, president of American Border Patrol, a nonprofit border-watch group, called the provision “more silliness.”

“I would suggest that instead of this kind of legislation to add to heaps of millions of words of legislation that do no good, let’s get down and deal with the problem directly,” he said. “We need a fence, and we need to locate all of those places along the border where a tunnel could exit, and there are not that many.”

Spencer, who flies along the border from Texas to California each month, said he is working on a project to identify the spots and he would be willing to share that information with the government.

He mentioned Nogales as a problem area. He said the government should condemn the properties along the border that are usable for tunnels and create a 100-foot buffer zone. Instruments could be buried under the ground to sense if anybody is digging.

“We can’t hold America hostage for 10 or 20 property owners,” Spencer said.

HERALD/REVIEW reporter Jonathon Shacat can be reached at 515-4693 or by e-mail at jonathon.shacat@bisbeereview.net.

Print this story Email this story

Font Size

Use the form below to post a brief comment to this story, or respond to other readers. Please use the word count tool to assist you in keeping your remarks to 100 words or fewer.
Comments appear once they are approved. Your thoughtful contribution to the online discussion is appreciated.

Donzo wrote on Dec 22, 2007 3:53 PM:

" They will just dig deeper or use natural caves and so on. You cannot eliminate tunnels. Look how deep mines go, like 9 miles now ? Liberals dont have the votes either, its the independents that swing to one or tother. "

William Garland wrote on Dec 21, 2007 5:22 PM:

" Cross border tunnels often exit in private property. The law should provide for the civil forfeiture of any property used in facilitating illegal entry. "

sierravistan wrote on Dec 20, 2007 3:30 PM:

" To Carly, for your info, in San Diego the fence is working so well that the criminal element has taken to hiring young boys to throw rocks at American citizens, with no regard to their life, in order to creat a disturbance so they can attempt to get in somewhere else...you need to read the news stories before you make such stupid staements and show such ignorance of the true stituation. I for one would go for amile "no man's land" as long as it was mined and had weapons ponted and used on anyone attempting to cross. "

Ed Tilton wrote on Dec 20, 2007 8:26 AM:

" Seems a better idea than billions on useless gadgets that never work. All they do is make a lot of money for contractors who contribute to the right campaign. "

SVLib wrote on Dec 19, 2007 10:01 PM:

" Thanks again, Rep. Giffords. Keep up the great work. And to all you Conservatives you can save you hot air and just VOTE! Oh I forget there are not enough of yous.... Happy Holidays! "

Hey Carley wrote on Dec 19, 2007 7:16 PM:

" Go back to the East coast. "

Tasha Tchin wrote on Dec 19, 2007 4:15 PM:

" Land mines would work so much better. Anyone digging into one wouldn't make the same mistake twice. "

Bobby wrote on Dec 19, 2007 3:10 PM:

" Folks, Arizonans, please, Giffords is playing you like a fiddle. She is literally using Napolitanos technique of "I can't do anything on this (important) issue", but,"look at how tough I am,on doing something on this other(useless)issue." These people are nothing less than TOXIC to American citizens, whom they love to play with like pawns on a chess board. "

Writer wrote on Dec 19, 2007 2:37 PM:

" The headline should have read; Giffords has tunnel vision. "

Bobby wrote on Dec 19, 2007 1:22 PM:

" The Democrats just gutted the fence, Giffords is a liberal Democrat. The whole democratic party is run by the racist raza groups. I would not trust Giffords with a dirty pair of socks, let alone border issues. "

Frank Lavoie wrote on Dec 19, 2007 12:25 PM:

" Giffords has been unable to get this veteran's benefits restored after the VA messed up a simple change of address, so how does this tunnel proposal get expedient to legislate? Clearly no study has been made, not even of historic mine tunnels and cave systems known to go as much as 30 to 70 miles underground, some well across the border. What of currently permitted mines & claims along the border which have 3000 feet of legal tunneling rights? Do you think they will offer THIS poor homeless miner camping any recompense for this 14th amendment "taking"? Where's MY$? "

Nonsense, wrote on Dec 19, 2007 7:26 AM:

" More useless word from Giffords. First she wants to delay building the fence, now she wants to criminalize digging tunnels under it. "

Carly wrote on Dec 19, 2007 7:11 AM:

" Where is this hysteria going to stop? When the border wall doesn't work (and it's not working in San Diego), they're going to call for double and triple and quadruple walls. When the '100 foot buffer zone' isn't effectve, they'll ask for 200 foot and 300 foot buffer zones. How much territory are we going to make a no-man's land? How many homes and businesses are we going to bulldoze? This strategy will utterly destroy our border communities, and it just won't work. "