Don’t Think Walls Work? Ask Yuma County’s Sheriff
Article subtitle:
Arizona's Leon Wilmot says border fencing constructed a decade ago helped to cut crime dramatically in his corner of Arizona
Article publisher:
Polizette
Article date:
6 April 2018
Article category:
National News
Medium
Article Body:
... Wilmot recalled the lawlessness that ruled the border in the early years of the 21st century, when the desert boundary between the U.S. and Mexico was virtually wide open. The Yuma sector of the U.S. Border Patrol — which runs 126 miles and includes parts of California — had just 12 miles of fence and minimal barriers marking the line.
It was hardly a deterrence, Wilmot said....
2005, Border Patrol agents arrested 138,438 illegal immigrants in the Yuma sector alone.
Then, in 2006, Congress passed the Secure Fence Act. Workers replaced the existing barriers with 126 miles of primary and secondary fencing, in additional to vehicle fencing. Wilmot said his entire county now is separated from Mexico by a strong physical barrier.
Border apprehensions fell to 118,537 in fiscal year 2006 and tumbled to 37,994 the following year. The DHS declared that it had achieved "operational control" of the entire Yuma sector.
By fiscal year 2016, apprehensions stood at just 14,170, indicating that few illegal immigrants even try to make the crossing. According to DHS, illegal vehicle crossings declined from 2,700 in fiscal year 2005 to six a few years later....