By Leslie Hoffman, Associated Press
ARTESIA, N.M. (AP) - A class of 48 aspiring Border Patrol agents has become the first to begin training at an academy much nearer to the U.S.-Mexico border they’ll soon be charged with protecting.
For years, new agents have trained in Glynco, Ga., and Charleston, S.C. Consolidating training at the federal law enforcement center about 80 miles north of New Mexico’s border with Texas gives trainees a chance to learn in a Southwestern environment akin to the one they’ll be working in.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Robert Bonner welcomed the class Thursday and said they are “training to become modern-day centurions, charged with guarding our country from all those who seek to harm us or violate our laws, whether they’re international terrorists or drug smugglers, illegal entrants or other criminals who intend to break our nation’s laws or who are likely to commit crimes in our country.”
In an interview with The Associated Press, Bonner said that Border Patrol agents no longer merely stand guard against waves of migrants in search of work or drug smugglers. They are a critical line of defense in U.S. efforts to repel terrorists.
“The reality is that we need to do our traditional mission even better - and that is the ability to detect people coming across our border unlawfully - to make sure we are in a position to prevent potential terrorist operatives from entering our country,” he said.
During the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, agents made more than 1.1 million undocumented immigrant arrests, up from more than 931,000 the year before. In New Mexico, arrests have hit a three-year high.
Up until now, the Artesia center provided only advanced training to experienced Border Patrol agents. The decision to locate the Border Patrol Academy here was prompted, in part, by the remote location - an element seen as a bonus for federal law enforcement activities.
The southeastern New Mexico locale also allows new agents “to train in an environment that’s realistic, that’s relevant to where most Border Patrol agents are assigned and stationed and that’s the Southwest border,” Bonner said.
For example, trainees can see firsthand how to “cut sign” - Border Patrol lingo for tracking - and how border checkpoints operate here, he said.
The government acquired the former Artesia Christian College campus in 1989 and started the center as an advanced training facility for federal law enforcement officers, partnering with dozens of federal organizations, including the FBI, Bureau of Indian Affairs, the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The Artesia training center and three others nationwide were moved to the Department of Homeland Security last year.
During the year after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, center personnel focused their efforts on training air marshals. The following year, the emphasis shifted to basic training for uniformed officers from various agencies.
Last year, the center held the first six-day class aimed at certifying pilots of passenger jets to carry a handgun in the cockpit. Cargo jet plane pilots are also getting the same training to carry handguns in the cockpit during flights.
Amid the changes, the 2,540-acre campus has transformed from a law enforcement community college into a national security university suited for the Border Patrol’s academy, said Linda Thomas, a senior policy and project analyst at the center.
Since Sept. 11, 2001, the government has poured about $30 million into improvements, from new security and administration buildings to a new 286-room dormitory and cafeteria, Thomas said. To accommodate the Border Patrol Academy, there are plans for an aquatic center, expansion of an building used for physical training, an additional 150-bed dormitory and a language arts building.
The Border Patrol eventually hopes to train about 1,000 new agents here annually, which means an economic boost for a small community largely reliant on the oil and gas industry and agriculture.
“I think it’s going to be significant having them here,” Artesia Mayor Daniel Reyes said.
Federal officials have told him to prepare for the relocation of more than 100 permanent agency staffer members and their families, all looking for places to live and shop in this community of about 10,500. Over the last month, the city council has already approved five new housing subdivisions and plans are in the works for a Wal-Mart.