August 28 - Septemer 3
This Week in USBP History
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Good morning! Welcome to another This Week in USBP History!
Let me start this update with a brief story...
On Friday, August 26, 2022, I happened to be in Washington DC. I had to go to a building called the National Place. It's across the street from the Ronald Reagan Building (RRB) where USBP HQ is located. The RRB has a parking garage that is convenient to use. As I finished parking my truck in the RRB, I checked my phone and saw that I had an email from Chief of the Border Patrol Raul Ortiz. In the email he asked me to give him a call about the "...awards issue I had raised before I retired". He was referencing nominations for past events that he had rejected, disapproving 370 employees from receiving USBP Honorary Awards.
Of course, I immediately called him, let him know I was in the RRB and suggested I come to his office if he had the time. I think he may have been just as surprised that I was in the RRB as I was to receive his email.
Five minutes later, I was in his office!
Chief Ortiz began by telling me that he had watched a recent Medal of Honor presentation where several Vietnam veterans were recognized decades after their qualifying actions. He saw how the presentation emotionally touched both the recipients and everyone witnessing it. He told me that it reminded him of the award nominations that he had disapproved in 2020 and he realized that he had made a mistake.
Chief Ortiz said that he wanted to contact me and personally let me know that he had reconsidered his past decision. That he had directed that all of the disapproved nominations be revived to go through the process to receive recognition. He said that there were too many to do at once. Therefore, they would be considered and presented in phases.
I spent about 20-25 minutes in his office and left with one of his personal coins (see below).
I commend him for having the strength to change his decision, and for providing an example of valuing the workforce that should be emulated in the sectors.
Borrowing from my time in the U.S. Navy - Bravo Zulu Chief Ortiz!
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You know, I think every week is a huge week in USBP history. This week is no different!
There are documents from 1918 that show the authorized and actual strength of the Mounted Watchmen. There's a 1924 document where the Commissioner-General recommended changing the title of Patrol Inspectors to Junior Immigrant Inspectors.
From Joe Banco's HONOR FIRST: The Story of the United States Border Patrol - Volume II, we have information about the "Boatlift" in 1953, USBP canines being used in 1955, and the termination of the Border Patrol Air Transport Operation in 1972. (Thank you Joe!).
We celebrate the heroism of four Newton-Azrak Award recipients on the anniversaries of their actions.
We also remember two of our fallen on the anniversaries of their deaths.
Have a great week!
Cliff
PS -
- As an open and continuous invitation to current and former USBP employees, I am always accepting photos to post in the USBP Photo Galleries and in the Upholding Honor First pages. I sure would appreciate you visiting those pages and sending me anything that you think I could post (just attach them to a reply to this email).
- If this email doesn't render well, please follow the "View in Browser" link in the upper right corner.
- As always, make sure to explore all of the hyperlinks to documents and pages.
- Finally, please forward this email to whomever you think may enjoy it.
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This is the section where I correct the mistakes from my last email. I will also use this section to provide other perspectives of USBP history.
I didn't find any errors of significance from last week.
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The workplace climate resulting from a combination of organizational pride and employee morale.
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Organizational pride is the positive feeling experienced by employees from being part of a meaningful team that is rich in history, tradition and culture.
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Employee morale is the feeling experienced by employee based in part on their perception of:
- Being valued by the organization,
- Fairly compensated, and
- Performing meaningful work.
Esprit de corps is reinforced through the shared goals, mission and values of the organization and its employees.
The definition turns Esprit de Corps into a simple formula and defines parts that comprise organizational pride and employee morale.
Esprit de Corps = Organizational Pride + Employee Morale
Esprit de Corps is the key to a healthy organization and engaged employees.
Honor First is foundational to the Border Patrol's organizational pride and integral to its Esprit de Corps.
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1918
- Two documents from 1918 have been found where the Commissioner-General responded to a request concerning staffing levels along the Mexican border. The document from September 3, 1918 shows authorized numbers and the document from September 4, 1918 shows actual numbers.
The documents specify that there were 68 Mounted Watchmen employed but 84 authorized. Mounted Watchmen were also known as Mounted Guards and Mounted Patrol. It is unknown and unverified where the "maximum strength of 75 watchmen" quote originated. The September 3rd document is the best evidence yet located that indicates the maximum strength of the mounted force (68 Watchmen). The September 3rd document The September 4th document
1924
- On August 30, 1924, the Commissioner-General sent a memo to the Second Assistant Secretary in the Department of Labor that began, "A question has arisen concerning the source of authority, if any, possessed by officers connected with the border patrol service who have been given the designation of Patrol Inspector." By law, authority rested with employees who had the title "Immigrant Inspector" who were paid more than Border Patrol Inspectors. In order that Border Patrol Inspectors might receive legal authority without being paid more, the Commissioner-General proposed to resurrect a plan that was used in 1913 for Mounted Watchmen, and to rename Border Patrol Inspectors, Junior Immigrant Inspectors.
1931
- On August 31, 1931, Chief of the Border Patrol Ruel E. Davenport (1878-1961) responded via a memo to the National Rifle Association. The response mention that the Border Patrol shooting team article in The American Riflemen (see page 36 of 50), and that the Border Patrol was unable to send a team to compete in Camp Perry, Ohio due to "economical reasons".
- On September 1, 1931, Commissioner-General Harry E. Hull (1864-1938) sent a memo to the Commissioner of Immigration for the Montreal District (District #1) concerning firearms and competing in Camp Perry, Ohio in 1932.
- A "Commissioner of Immigration" was one of two titles used for people who were in charge of and immigration district. The other title was, "District Director".
- On September 2, 1931, Chief of the Border Patrol Ruel E. Davenport (1878-1961) wrote a memo to Bert R. Landis of the Bureau of Immigration concerning, "...draft of revised specifications tor Border Patrol uniforms."
- The suggestions provided by Davenport would be incorporated into the Border Patrol's second uniform policy General Order 179.
1953
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As part of the deterrent effort and interior repatriation program, the INS and U.S. Border Patrol implemented a “Boatlift” from Port Isabel, Texas to Tampico and Veracruz, Mexico beginning in 1953. Transporting Mexican nationals by Boatlift as part of interior repatriation was seen as a more economical, timely, and “cleaner” option than Bus or Train-Lifts for interior repatriation by the Mexican government. Three Mexican flagged vessels with Mexican crews were used for the Boatlift: the S.S. Emancipation, S.S. Mercurio, and S.S.Veracruz. The first “Boatlift” repatriation left Port Isabel, Texas, on September 3, 1953, with 800 Mexicans aboard the S.S. Emancipation. The Boatlift was responsible for repatriating 2,000 illegal aliens a month, with a total of 49,503 deported between September 3, 1953, and August 25, 1956, when the Boatlift was terminated.
1955
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The Mexican Government began complaining to the Department of State about the use of canines by the Border Patrol, not based on actual incidents with their nationals, but because of news reports and some of the verbiage used in the reports. Specifically mentioned in a Diplomatic Note dated August 31, 1955 was the term “trapping” used in a news report. Based on the article, the Mexican Government claimed that the Border Patrol was “hunting down and guarding” Mexican nationals with dogs and that the practice had “discriminatory appearances”
1972
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In FY 1972, the INS made the decision to terminate the Border Patrol Air Transport Operation in favor of “more cost effective” bus transportation. Alien transport requiring air services would be contracted out or carried out by the U.S. Marshals Service’s new National Prisoner Transportation System, later to become the Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System (JPATS). The final flight for the Border Patrol Air Transport fleet occurred on September 1, 1972, when Convair N1179 landed and was declared excess property by the General Services Administration. Twelve transport aircraft were used between 1954 and 1972, accumulating 78,859 flight hours and 330,073,133 passenger miles.
2019
- On August 29, 2019, the USBP issued Interim Wear Guidance for U.S. Border Patrol Honorary Awards that authorized the following to be worn on Ike Jackets, dress shirts and rough duty uniforms (see the table below):
- Newton-Azrak Award
- USBP Purple Cross
- USBP Commendation Medal
- USBP Achievement Medal
- USBP 75th Anniversary Medal
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Newton-Azrak Award Action Anniversaries | |
Follow this link to see examples of USBP employees Upholding Honor First.
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An organization’s values are codified in its awards system. Recognizing the achievements, service and heroism of employees is important. It is critical for those in positions of leadership to value the workforce. Awards are a fundamental manner for leaders to demonstrate appreciation to the workforce for upholding the organizational values. – U.S. Border Patrol Honorary Awards
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2002
Jered Bacon Border Patrol Agent Tucson Sector Robert M. Lawler Border Patrol Agent Tucson Sector On August 31, 2001, at about 1:15 a.m., while patrolling the border, Border Patrol Agents Robert M. Lawler, Jered Bacon, and Supervisory Border Patrol Agent Ed Tracy noticed an apartment building fire at 1850 Patagonia Highway near Nogales, Arizona. The agents immediately called for the Nogales Fire Department. The fire spread so quickly that the building was engulfed in flames without warning to the occupants. Realizing that the Nogales Fire Department would not arrive on time, and being the only individuals in the area, the agents took immediate action. Without regard for their own safety, the agents risked their lives to evacuate the building. Most of the occupants were sleeping in their beds at the time of the fire. By the time the Nogales Fire Department and the Nogales Police Department arrived, the agents had extracted all 22 occupants from the building, which by then was totally engulfed in flames.
2022
Ruben Gonzalez - photo, photo 2, award certificate, award set Border Patrol Agent San Diego, CA On September 1, 2021, at approximately 1:30 PM, beyond the call of duty, Border Patrol Agents Ruben Gonzalez and Christian Llamas entered a sewage contaminated area of the Pacific Ocean at great personal risk to save a swimmer facing certain death by drowning. After swimming approximately 50 yards through battering waves, BPA's Gonzalez and Llamas reached the exhausted swimmer and pulled him to shore, saving his life. BPA's Gonzalez's and Llamas' actions brought great credit upon themselves and the United States Border Patrol.
Christian Llamas - photo, award set Border Patrol Agent San Diego, CA On September 1, 2021, at approximately 1:30 PM, beyond the call of duty, Border Patrol Agents Ruben Gonzalez and Christian Llamas entered a sewage contaminated area of the Pacific Ocean at great personal risk to save a swimmer facing certain death by drowning. After swimming approximately 50 yards through battering waves, BPA's Gonzalez and Llamas reached the exhausted swimmer and pulled him to shore, saving his life. BPA's Gonzalez's and Llamas' actions brought great credit upon themselves and the United States Border Patrol.
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As of May 16, 2022, the U.S. Border Patrol has suffered 152* fallen. Titles:
- 3 Mounted Watchmen fell before 1924 and are carried as Border Patrol fallen
- 48 Border Patrol Inspectors fell between 1924 and 1970
- 100 Border Patrol Agents have fallen since 1970
- 1 Enforcement Analysis Specialist
The names that appear below hold a place of honor. They have made the ultimate sacrifice in an effort to fulfill the oath each officer took to protect and defend the United States of America.
The facts regarding each officer are presented without major editing of the "language of the day" found in the reports detailing the circumstances of each event. This is done to provide the reader an association with historical timeframes.
Employees who died in the line of duty due to being exposed to deadly illnesses will not have the cause of death listed.
*With the exception of two of the fallen immediately below, all names are listed (or in the process of being included) on the official Honor Roll of U.S. Border Patrol Fallen and inscribed on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial. The U.S. Border Patrol should fix these discrepancies. HonorFirst.com honors both of the fallen.
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Joe R. White - He is recognized as officially fallen by the U.S. Border Patrol but his name is not inscribed on the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial.
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John Charles Gigax - He is not recognized as officially fallen by Customs and Border Protection or the U.S. Border Patrol. He is remembered by all except his own agency with his name being inscribed on the:
- National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial (see this link),
- Officer Down memorial Page (see this link), and
- Texas Peace Officer's Memorial (see this link).
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1950
Michael T. Box Date of Birth: August 4, 1901 Entered on Duty: November 25, 1926 Title: Airplane Pilot End of Watch: August 29, 1950
Details: Just after dawn on August 29, 1950, Airplane Pilot Michael T. Box was patrolling by plane in the irrigated farm area about 20 miles north of El Paso, Texas, searching for aliens who had walked through the desert at night and were attempting to get away to the north through the upper Rio Grande Valley. Pilot Box was working with two ground crews who were in radio-equipped jeeps. The operation had netted several aliens and others were being sought when the engine of the aircraft stopped and the plane crashed. It burst into flames; however, fellow officers were able to remove Pilot Box from the aircraft within minutes after the crash occurred. Artificial respiration was commenced immediately and was continued until Pilot Box was pronounced dead by a doctor who lived nearby. Investigation into the accident revealed that the motor of the aircraft ceased apparently due to difficulty in the fuel system. Pilot Box maintained control of the plane as it lost altitude and maneuvered the aircraft into position to make an emergency landing in an irrigation ditch. The aircraft struck a submerged object on the canal bottom upon impact. Pilot Box's seat strap was broken and he was thrown with terrific force into the wheel and instrument panel. He died instantly as his chest and skull were crushed, his jawbone was broken in two places, and both shoulders were broken.
Gravesite
2021
Chad E. McBroom Entered on Duty: February 7, 1997 Title: Border Patrol Agent End of Watch: August 29, 2021
Details: Agent McBroom entered on duty on February 7, 1997, as part of the 329th Session of the Border Patrol Academy. At the time of his passing, he was assigned to the Tucson Sector Special Operations Detachment in Arizona. The circumstances of his passing were reviewed by an executive panel and the CBP Commissioner who determined that this death occurred in the line of duty. He is survived by his wife Magaly; children: Jackielynn, Kaya, and Reagan; and parents: Don and Sherry.
Gravesite
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The green bubbles below are links.
Click to explore!
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A special thanks to the Border Patrol Museum, a non-profit organization (CFC #16083) for the use of many of their images on the site. Please consider visiting the Border Patrol Museum's Gift Shop. The Border Patrol Museum receives no federal funds and relies on donations and gift sales to remain open.
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Retired Deputy Chief Patrol Agent Joseph Banco |
Fellow USBP historian and retired Deputy Chief Patrol Agent Joseph Banco has written a series of very well researched books on USBP history. These include:
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HONOR FIRST: The Story of the United States Border Patrol -Volume I covering the Mounted Guards, the formation of the U.S. Border Patrol, and its first 25 years,
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HONOR FIRST: The Story of the United States Border Patrol -Volume II covering 1949-1974; and
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HONOR FIRST: The Unsung Heroes of Oxford telling the story of the U.S. Border Patrol deployment to the University of Mississippi in 1962 to defend the U.S. Constitution and ensure the enrollment of the first African-American at Ole Miss.
Joe is currently writing Volume III of the HONOR FIRST series, which will cover U.S. Border Patrol history from 1975-1999. Please visit his website at www.migrajoe.com or visit the Border Patrol Museum's Gift Shop for information how to order the books.
More about Joe
Joseph Banco is a naturalized U.S. citizen who emigrated from the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. With over 38 years of government service, he retired from the U.S. Border Patrol in 2018 as the Deputy Chief of the New Orleans Sector after almost 24 years, having served on the Southern, Northern, and Coastal borders as well as assignments at Headquarters in Washington, DC, and overseas. These included border assignments in Texas, California, Arizona, Washington, Florida, New York, Michigan, and Louisiana, working with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police while assigned as liaison at their Headquarters in Ottawa, Canada, negotiating international agreements with Canada, Mexico, and Central American nations and coordinating the posting of Border Patrol Agents around the world while assigned as Chief of Foreign Operations for the U.S. Border Patrol. Prior to entering the U.S. Border Patrol, Joseph Banco served on active duty in the U.S. Air Force for more than 14 years as a Law Enforcement Specialist/Supervisor and Disaster Preparedness Manager. His service in the Air Force included assignments across the United States, in the European theater, and in Southwest Asia as part of Operation Desert Storm. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and a Master’s Degree in Homeland Security. Joseph Banco is a recipient of numerous awards to include the Outstanding American by Choice Award, the Secretary’s Award for Excellence, the DHS Partner Award, and the USBP Commendation Medal.
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Retired Immigration Special Agent Ray Harris |
Ray Harris is a native of Columbia, South Carolina. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Arizona, an Associate of Arts in Business Administration from Pensacola Junior College, and an Associate of Arts in Criminal Justice from Pima County Community College. He is a 13-year veteran of the United States Marine Corps having achieved the rank of Gunnery Sergeant (E-7).
He entered on duty with the U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) as a member of Class 139 on September 15, 1980. During his 17-year career with the USBP, he was assigned to five different stations:
- Presidio (1980-1982),
- Nogales (1982-1988),
- New Orleans (1988-1992),
- Temecula (1992-1995), and
- Riverside (1995-1997) where he had been promoted to Supervisory Border Patrol Agent.
In 1997, he transferred to Investigations within the Immigration and Naturalization Service as a Special Agent in San Bernardino, California. He remained in the position until his retirement from federal service in 2002.
He is a recipient of several Quality Step Increases and numerous performance awards. In 2020, Ray Harris was awarded the Border Patrol's highest award for performance, the USBP Commendation Medal. As of this writing, he is the only recipient to have received the recognition for efforts performed completely while retired.
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The Creation of the HonorFirst Website and Delphi Forums
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The internet saw its popularity begin to grow in the mid-1990. About that time, Ray Harris realized that there were no sites that contained information on the U.S. Border Patrol and its hiring process. To address that shortfall, sometime around 1998, Ray created a one-page website that consisted of a simple announcement that the Border Patrol was hiring. The site had a green background with a green font and included his email address. Here is a capture of the website from 1999.
After launching the site, Ray was soon was overwhelmed with applicants requesting additional information. In his attempt to answer the flood of applicants, Ray spent approximately four hours on the telephone per day speaking to applicants. Realizing the unsustainable pace was problematic, Ray found a solution with Delphi Forums. In March of 1998, Ray created an open forum that evolved to be the Agent's Forum. The idea behind the forum was for people who were in the hiring process, and agents, to offer assistance to new applicants in navigating the convoluted hiring process. At the time, the Agent's Forum was the only LEO forum on Delphi. In the following year, Ray created the Applicant's Forum.
Ray realized that the government seemed to have no intention of creating a website to inform and assist applicants. Therefore, he expanded the information contained on HonorFirst.com and switched website providers. HonorFirst.com was dedicated exclusively to assisting Border Patrol recruiting and helping applicants. Since its inception, the Applicant's Forum has accumulated over 48,000 members, with over 3.7 million additional people visiting.
The significant impact of the site became apparent when Ray received a call from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) stating that HonorFirst.com was skewing their statistics. To correct the anomalies, OPM assigned a code to collect statistics of applicants who applied from HonorFirst.com.
Years later, Ray received a call from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) requesting to use content from HonorFirst.com to help establish what would evolve into today's CBP Border Patrol hiring page. Since then, CBP's hiring websites have improved and are great sources of information for applicants.
In March 2021, Ray invited recently retired Assistant Chief Clifford Gill to assist in moderating the Delphi forums and to be a webmaster for HonorFirst.com. Cliff has built on the solid foundation created by Ray and has expanded HonorFirst.com to include pages to attract current and former Border Patrol agents as well as those interested in the USBP. | |
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Retired Assistant Chief Clifford Gill |
Clifford Gill is a native of Cincinnati, Ohio. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice from the American Military University. He is a veteran of the United States Navy.
He entered on duty with the U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) as a member of Class 377 on May 18, 1998. During his career, he worked in the Laredo Sector and at USBP Headquarters in Washington DC.
In his final assignment at USBP Headquarters, he served as the Assistant Chief over the Awards and History Programs. He was the founding program manager for each of those programs. As the historian, he made numerous significant discoveries through hours of research at the National Archives. In his previous assignment as the USBP Fleet Program Manager he identified efficiencies in managing the fleet that earned him the Logistician of the Year Award given by the International Society of Logisticians, Washington DC chapter. In addition to his regular duties he was a member of the USBP Honor Guard and Pipes and Drums (P&D). He led the formation of the P&D in 2007 and was the founding Commander.
He is a recipient of the USBP Newton-Azrak Award, the USBP Commendation Medal with a "V" device, the USBP Achievement Medal with "2" device in lieu of a second award and the USBP 75th Anniversary Medal.
In retirement, aside from sending USBP history mails, he assists Ray Harris in managing HonorFirst.com and in moderating the applicant's and agent's Delphi forums. To continue advocating for the USBP workforce, he maintains regular communication with active USBP employees of all levels/ranks through daily emails, telephone calls and via social media.
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USBP - W.I.N. E30: Ret. Assistant Chief Clifford Gill
Chief Patrol Agent Jason Owens, interviews Retired Assistant Chief Clifford Gill. Clifford Gill is considered the first Border Patrol Historian. Gill discusses several myths regarding Border Patrol history. Topics include the actual founder of the Border Patrol, and the first established Border Patrol Station.
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The photograph above was taken of Cliff in December 2018 at the National Archives in Washington DC. At the time, he was the USBP's historian was discovering many of the documents that were used to create this email.
Joe Banco and Cliff have spent 100s of hours in that room constructing lost USBP history.
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