Cross-Border Shootings by Border Patrol Since 2010
Updated February 26, 2020
Since 2010, more than 125 people have died at the hands of Border Patrol agents. Of those tragic deaths, six of them have been cross-border shootings, beginning with the tragic killing of Sergio Adrián Hernández Güereca.
Justice for the families of those who were killed in these incidents was dealt a serious blow on February 25, 2020, when the Supreme Court ruled that constitutional prohibitions and protections do not travel with the bullet, and denied the parents of Sergio Adrián the right to sue the Border Patrol agent who shot him. With this ruling, impunity of Border Patrol agents is now absolute, and there is nothing to stop them from shooting at will across the border, leading to more violence, death and distrust. In remembrance of these lives lost to unaccountable border patrol agents who operate within a culture of impunity, the Southern Border Communities Coalition tracks these tragic incidents, and calls on our lawmakers, elected officials and candidates to stand with border communities and move away from misguided and wrong-headed enforcement-only border policies, toward a New Border Vision that upholds the dignity and human rights of all people.
2012 | 2011 | 2010
2012
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6. José Antonio Elena Rodriguez
Age: 16
Nationality: Mexican
Cause of Death: Fatal shooting
Incident Date: Oct. 10, 2012
Incident Location: Nogales, Sonora
Jose was shot multiple times in the back and killed after reportedly throwing rocks at U.S. Border Patrol agents.
- Border Patrol shooting of Mexican teen draws condemnation
- Mexican teen killed by U.S. border agents was shot SEVEN times in the back after throwing rocks across border
5. Guillermo Arévalo Pedroza
Age: 36
Nationality: Mexican
Cause of Death: Fatal shooting
Incident Date: Sept. 3, 2012
Incident Location: Nuevo Laredo, México
Guillermo was shot and killed while at a barbeque with his wife and daughters. Border patrol agents claim they were under attack from rock throwers on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande. A video of the shooting didn’t show any rock throwing.
Eyewitness video:
4. Juan Pablo Perez Santillán
Age: 30
Nationality: U.S.
Cause of Death: Fatal shooting
Incident Date: July 7, 2012
Location: Near Matamoros, Mexico
Juan Pablo hot and killed while standing on the banks of the Rio Grande. Border Patrol claims Juan Pablo was throwing rocks; witnesses in Mexico say he was unarmed.
- Mexico Accuses Border Patrol of Shooting Underage Mexican
- ‘My brother … he’s dead’: Mourning after border shooting
- Dispara agente de la Patrulla Fronteriza y mata a mexicano
- Condenan muerte de mexicano a manos de agente fronterizo de EE.UU.
- U.S. Border Patrol Agent Fatally Shoots Man Across border
2011
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3. Jose Alfredo Yañez Reyes
Age: 40
Nationality: Mexican
Cause of Death: Fatal shooting
Incident Date: June 21, 2011
Incident Location: Tijuana, Mexico
Jose Alfredo was shot and killed while suspected of attempting to cross the border into the U.S. unauthorized. Agents claim suspected border crossers were throwing rocks; it’s unclear if Reyes was involved in the rock throwing.
- Agent’s shot kills rock thrower at border fence
- Border shooting reignites use of force debate
- Incident that ended with agent fatally shooting man restarts debate about patrol’s response to ‘rocking’
- Police Investigate Officer-Involved Shooting at the Border
- ACLU Calls for Probe in Border Shooting
2. Ramses Barron Torres
Age: 17
Nationality: Mexican
Cause of Death: Fatal shooting
Incident Date: Jan. 5, 2011
Incident Location: Nogales, Mexico
Ramses was shot and killed after allegedly throwing rocks at Border Patrol agents. Witnesses deny he threw rocks. DOJ stated in their press release closing their investigation that they reviewed surveillance videos, but videos have not been released publicly.
- More accounts emerge following deadly border shooting
- Border shooting now a federal case in Mexico
- One year later, deadly shooting still under federal investigation
- Federal Officials Close the Investigation into the Death of Ramses Barron-Torres
- Mexico official: Teen was fatally shot at border
- CASE closed by DOJ: http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2013/August/13-crt-908.html
2010
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1. Sergio Adrian Hernandez-Guereca
Age: 15
Nationality: Mexican
Cause of Death: Fatal shooting
Incident Date: June 7, 2010
Incident Location: El Paso, TX
Sergio Adrian was shot and killed by a Border Patrol agent after a group of suspected undocumented immigrants reportedly threw rocks at agents at an international bridge. Sergio was on Mexican soil; the agent was 12 yards from the border on the U.S. side.