This guy doesn't know when to pick his battles or how to fight them.   He must hunt mice with a shotgun.

Thanks Bressi...well done and the kid is a hero! Does he ever hang out at the Honeycomb Hideout? He needs the vid cam. 4512

 I am actually shocked by both the agent and by you. I work as an attorney for a living and I guess I pay more attention to checkpoint law as I go through them every day and I have friends on both sides. So here is the good, the bad, the ugly, but more importantly, the truth: 5th Amendment rights protect you against incriminating yourself in a criminal case. That means you can't make statements in a court that would confer a conviction. Outside a courtroom, it is worthless...period. The Miranda warning protects you outside of a courtroom, but the precedence is set at incriminating statements. There is absolutely no legal right to not give your name to an officer of the law. Providing ID is actually required in all states to any identified law enforcement officer upon request. This is so they can make sure that during a routine traffic stop they can cart off the real scumbags out there with warrants, etc. You are a law abiding college kid I take it, so actually, you need to quit breaking the law. But I am on your side, so let me clarify. By doctrine (Title 8 United States Code, INA secs 235, 287) Checkpoints are to be placed at distances 25-100 miles from the border. There is a certain status of LEGAL non-immigrant who can traverse the border and commute, but they are restricted to a nexus 25 miles from the border without certain documentation (I-94). These checkpoints have to be farther than 25 miles to catch these individuals who attempt to violate their status. As a law abiding American citizen, you do have certain rights and you should be able to travel freely. But remember, these agents arrest tens of thousands of criminals and illegal aliens who are infringing on your rights and benefits every day.

Now for the agents. It is appalling that they would call you names or to treat you in such a manner. I cannot believe that they would detain you without giving you a better explanation other than just saying "because we can". Granted, due diligence on behalf of the agents was extended by your failure to cooperate. They could have legally arrested you at that point under Title 18 USC Section 111 for impeding their investigation. Granted, it would not have been prosecuted, but it would still go on your record as a catch and release so to speak. They should explain to you why they are doing what they were doing and treat you with some respect, you deserve it.

Last, but not least, keep in mind that these agents are not Nazis. You hear people everyday say that military men and women are warmongers, but as a former military member, I assure you that I did not want to leave my family and risk dying because I enjoyed shooting at people, that is ridiculous. The same is true for these officers. As unprofessional as they were, they are enforcing the laws that actually ARE in effect. These checkpoints are not illegal at all. These officers are just trying to do the job as they were taught.

 Hope this helps. Be good and stay legal.

Poster "slevin culevra" is wrong when he says "There is absolutely no legal right to not give your name to an officer of the law. Providing ID is actually required in all states to any identified law enforcement officer upon request." There are states where you must provide your identity to police. These are called "Stop and Identify states." There are other states without state law requiring you to identify yourself to police. These are called "non-stop and identify states." Mr. Culevra is wrong again when he says you must provide ID to police. Actually, even in "stop and identify states," you do NOT have to give police your identification. You only need to state your name verbally. This is from the U.S. Supreme Court decision Hiibel versus Nevada. I don't know if Mr. Culevra is intentionally providing false information, or whether he just doesn't know the law. I believe the Border Patrol Agents are trained to violate the U.S. Constitution. This is a bad situation because Border Patrol seem not know that they are violating the Constitution. I think this is intentional on the part of their management.