Not Migration, Not Martyrdom, Just Murder

Perceptions of Reputation: An Introduction
The reputation of Mexico has been soiled by tales of decapitated heads on dance floors and drug lords who make Tony Montana seem like an okay-dude. On the flipside, United State Border Patrol Agents (all 21,000...soon to be 40,000) are revered as the ones who put their lives on the line (or should I say the fence?) to protect our beloved stars and stripes from such godless foreign villains.

If you were told that an unarmed 16 year old boy was pumped full of bullets while walking home in downtown Nogales, Mexico, with whom would you automatically associate guilt; cartel foot soldiers or our border boys in blue & green? Moreover, what if I told you that this young blood was spilled nearly one year ago and has gone essentially dismissed by governing authorities? To which nation would you attribute this crass oversight of justice; The United States of America or Mexico?

This is the story of that sixteen year old boy and the thugs accountable for his slaughter.

Unfortunate Portrait of a Child 

Friday October 10, 2012: As Told Through Comprehensive Research

The border fence slices through Nogales’s veiny roads. Poles of crude rusty steel translate International Street to Internacional Avenue, the street which sixteen year old Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez strolled on his routine return home from that of his girlfriend, Luz. On route he enjoyed hotdogs from the corner store that employed his brother, Diego. It was approximately 11 pm when Jose set out on this beaten path.

International

Internacional 

At this same time, a block away on the United State’s International Street, a Nogales, AZ police officer was radioed to confront two suspicious men strapped with large packs heading southbound on foot. Accompanied by Border Patrol agents, the officer responded. By their time of arrival the suspects were scaling the border fence. Border Patrol agents hollered verbal commands, expecting the men to comply and surrender. Once evident that these requests for forfeit were falling upon indifferent ears, the agents released their canine as further Border Patrol agents were drawn to the scene. Despite numerous on-looking agents and the best efforts of a German Shepherd, the two men were on the verge of conquering the steel curtain of American “national security” without apprehension.

As the men hopped into Mexico, evading arrest, they received aid from Internacional Avenue as people on the street began lobbing rocks in the direction of Border Patrol agents. Agents scampered for cover and all reached safety unscathed, except for one; the dog.  Border Patrol agents found this to be grounds suitable for deadly retaliation. In effect, cross-border bullets rained down onto Internacional Avenue.

By the end of the conflict, Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez lay still and tattered; his face buried in the pot-hole littered blacktop directly outside the barred window of an emergency medical clinic.

The emergency medical clinic; the dark spots in the building are bullet holes.

Autopsy results would later reveal that eleven bullets had entered Jose, including two to the back of the head with at least six hitting their mark after he had hit the ground.

Witnesses confirm seeing the pack-strapped suspects flee on foot. These witnesses did not link Jose to rock throwing or any other form of criminal activity. On his person was nothing but a cell phone.

The Equivalence of Stones to Bullets: Commentary of Colorful, Border-line Slander 

Stone-hurling is common practice where resources lack; stone wielding demonstrators have been present at recent large-scale riots in countries such as Greece, Turkey, Egypt and Peru. Mexicans have made habit of throwing stones at Border Patrol agents, racking up 249 documented cases in 2012. The tactic is popular enough that the United Nations and The United States Department of State have both addressed how to properly respond to such assault and both denounce using deadly force. Unfortunately it seems that Border Patrol has not received that memo, or maybe they have just been too busy riding their four-wheelers through nature reserves to read it; the Border Patrol Union supports agents who respond to stones with bullets.

Rocks can certainly be utilized as deadly weapons, no doubt about it, and I know that. I also know that Latinos have superhuman throwing capabilities (see Major League Baseball).  This being said, given the scene I find it nearly impossible to conceive that stones were used in a manner that threatened death in this incident. International Street runs parallel to Internacional Avenue but is elevated atop a hill. This is to say that if you stand at the border fence on International, you look upon rooftops on Internacional. Add a twenty-five foot tall fence to this equation and you may easily conclude that one cannot exactly laser-beam a rock from the street into the US.

A Pedestrians View from Internacional Avenue.
It is worth noting that many people believe the earthen material being thrown at Border Patrol agents was clumps of dirt, as they are prevalent at the bottom of the slope where there is no gravel.

Regardless, the dog got pegged and that was excuse enough for these trigger-happy rogue-warrior wannabes to call it a fight. Obviously, their are many fine men and women in the Border Patrol but any agent who would spray an unarmed child on foreign territory is utterly dishonorable or mentally ill.

The perpetrators in Mexico were (probably) armed with rocks. Let’s review what the other side was wielding. Jose’s elder brother Diego explained to me that two different bullets, .40 caliber and .223 caliber, were retrieved from embedment in walls and Jose’s corpse. This fact indicates two shooters. These bullets both match guns carried by the Border Patrol. Agents commonly carry two weapons that utilize the .40 caliber; these guns are the P2000 semi-automatic pistol and the UMP submachine gun which you may recognize as the weapon of choice within the 1920’s pinstriped Chicago mobster demographic. The .223 caliber matches a single weapon within the Border Patrol arsenal; the M4A1 assault rifle. This gun, which shoots 900 rounds per minute, is a favorite among military special operation units such as Navy SEALS, Army Green Berets and Marine Farce Recon. Needless to say, this is an accessory of absolute warfare.   

Diego Cradles His Cousin and the Memorial of his Deceased Brother

Through the narrow window of separation between border fence bars, past the interfering hillside brush, the shooters fixed their adolescent target in the crosshairs of their given weapons and squeezed bursts of bullets into his head. With their gun muzzles they followed the body as it went limp to the ground, continuing the bursts throughout. Jose’s murderers were skilled and ruthless marksmen; eleven bullets, two headshots, six bullets entering Jose while he lay face down in a puddle of his own blood is far from self-defense. This is not how you retaliate after someone hits your dog with a rock. This is what you do to someone when you desire that they have a closed-casket funeral. 

A Shooters View

In the Absence of Evidence, Speculation Reigns

Facts have been listed but much of this, of course, is speculation. Everything discussed thus far has been derived from news articles, websites, personal observation and discussions with the family whom Jose preceded in death. It would even be valid to accuse me of bias, seeing as how I am typically sympathetic towards young civilians who are murdered.

The fact that I have constructed such speculation is downright absurd, but this is not a comment on my speculation in itself. The absurdity arises from the fact that this entire incident was captured by a state-of-the-art surveillance tower that is located directly on the scene. Given the fact that the border is a hub for advancement in surveillance and other military technology, there is no questioning the quality of the footage. For nearly a year this visual footage has been passed around official personal within the United States government and is currently in the hands of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. No one outside of these agencies has viewed the tape and no one has been held accountable.

The surveillance tower may rise from the United States, but it has eyes on Mexico. This is the crime scene. 

Surveillance Tower Silhouette

(Slightly Uncomfortable) Food for Thought

In my opinion United States immigration policy, enforced by Border Patrol agents, is indirectly responsible for the deaths of hundreds of innocent people each year due to their overwhelming presence and efforts in deliberately funneling migrants into utterly inhospitable environments. That is an opinion and may be debated. It is fact, however, that at least nineteen people have lost their lives at the hands of the Border Patrol in the past two years alone. Six of these killings (including Jose, a man who was gathering firewood by a river and a man who was having a picnic for his daughter’s birthday—I kid you not) were the result of American bullets being shot in to Mexico. What is most shocking is the fact that a single agent has yet to be prosecuted in any of these instances.

From this mural , located midway between the surveillance tower and the emergency medical center, Santa Muerte watches over Internacional Avenue. The mural pre-dates Jose's murder.

Our Nation, with its supposed standards of decency and conduct, is concealing evidence of international homicide while neglecting to prosecute violent criminal perpetrators. In doing so the United States is excusing what may be fairly deemed state-based terrorism, carried out against Mexican civilians by American militants.

If this statement sounds like an extreme accusation, I challenge you to contemplate what terms would be used by United States media and government in the event of Mexican agents shooting an unarmed child on United States territory. And with that, I conclude; think hard on it....

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On the 10th day of every month a vigil is held on Internacional Avenue in memory of Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez. There, the family and community members pray for the soul of a child was a picky eater, a child who always smiled, a child who wanted to be a soldier when he grew up. They also pray that the United States allow access to the video footage from that night.

The family welcomes anyone at the vigil with embrace. If you are reading this and are able, please attend in support.

Vigil Night Scene

Jose's Mother

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References:

Santos, Fernanda. "Shootings by Agents Increase Border Tensions." New York Times 10 June 2013

John, Frey. "Over the Line." Washington Monthly. 06 May 2013

Ted , Robins. All Things Considered. National Public Radio: 11 Jun 2013

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/united_states_border_patrol

www.borderagent.us/equipment-used-by-u-s-border-patrol-agents/

Information derived from conversations with:

Diego Rodriguez

Officer Morales (full name unknown) of United States Border Patrol (confirmed information from websites concerning weapons in United States Border Patrol arsenal)

Aunt of Jose Rodriguez (name unknown)