This is a story that has been hanging out for a couple days now, but seems to be growing as illegal alien loving/immigration officer hating news outlets get in on the Outrage, even as far away as Columbus, Ohio
Woman records confrontation after refusing to answer immigration questions
A California woman says she was detained for about 90 minutes after refusing to tell border patrol agents if she is a US citizen.
One of Shane Parmely’s children recorded the exchange last Friday while sitting in the back seat of the car, KFMB reported.
Parmely, a teacher from San Diego, was approached by agents when she approached an inland immigration checkpoint. The agents asked her if she was a US citizen.
“Are we crossing a border?†Parmely responded.
“No,†he said, “But are you United States citizens?â€
“Are we crossing a border?†Parmely responded. “I’ve never been asked if I’m a citizen before when I’m traveling down the road.â€
“This is an immigration checkpoint,†the agent responded.
“Right, but we’re not crossing a border,†Parmely said. “You can ask me, I don’t have to answer.â€
Actually, by law, she does. But, what was really going on here?
Parmely told KFMB she refused to answer the questions in a show of solidarity with friends who say they have been aggressively questioned by border patrol agents.
“It’s horrifying to hear what has happened to my friends’ kids who are just brown,†she said.
“So, if I have an accent, and I’m brown, can I just say, ‘Yes,’ and go ahead or do I have to prove it?†Parmely asked the agent. “I have a bunch of teacher friends who are sick of their kids being discriminated against.â€
In other words, she intentionally provoked an incident here, and then complained when she got what she was asking for. This isn’t one of those things that just happened, as you can see from the video at the link. The officers were respectful and polite. She was nasty and rude.
Via Newsbusters, a CBS News This Morning report noted that she asked her kids to start recording as they approached the checkpoint. She knew she was going to create a scene.
The Border Patrol released this statement
Border Patrol checkpoints are critical tool for the enforcement of our nation’s immigration laws. At a Border Patrol checkpoint, an agent may question a vehicle’s occupants about their citizenship, place of birth, and request document proof of immigration status, how legal status was obtained and make quick observations of what is in plain view in the interior of the vehicle. During the course of the immigration inspection, if an occupant refuse to answer an agent’s questions, the agent may detain the driver for a reasonable amount of time until he or she can make a determination regarding the occupant’s immigration status. It is agency policy that all individuals with whom we interact are treated with dignity and respect.
She, and many illegal alien/immigration enforcement agent hating news outlets seem very proud that she never answered the question. Well, that’s because the Border Patrol would have verified who she was, before releasing her after a “heart-wrenching” 90 minutes. She asked for trouble, and go it.
There was a time (before tRump) that real conservatives would be upset that Federal agent would detain an American citizen and her children for 90 minutes for not bowing to their demands.
She was not entering the US from a foreign country, she was driving down a US road.
What happened to a US citizen’s right to be left the fuck alone?
tRumpism. Sad. Fascism.
The Supreme Court case which allowed this was United States v. Martinez-Fuerte, 428 U.S. 543 (1976), which was decided, 7 to 2. That was somewhat before Donald Trump became President of the United States.
Had she chosen to answer a legal question, she would not have been detained. As the driver of the automobile, she was required to carry identification — a driver’s license — so, right there, she had a problem.
The Pyrite State is currently trying to make their driver’s licenses “RealID” compliant. That means that licensees must present “more documentation than currently needed, including a birth certificate or other proof of birth and more proof that they are legal California residents and have a Social Security number.” The idiots in California do issue driver’s licenses to illegals, but those “cannot be used to board airplanes or enter federal facilities.” Soon, the lovely Mrs Parmely will wind up answering those questions simply by presenting her driver’s license. We wouldn’t be having the problems Mrs Parmely created for herself if the left also supported our immigration laws.
I’m having problems with that now: to transfer my Pennsylvania driver’s license to Kentucky, I have to have a valid Social Security card. Well, Hell, I got my Social Security card in 1969, and it was a piece of heavy-duty paper. Even if I hadn’t lost it decades ago, it has almost certainly disintegrated by now. Normally, a passport is sufficient to substitute, but the ladies at the DMV stated that the Bluegrass State requires the Social Security card, so I’ll have to get a duplicate.
My passport proves my citizenship, as it lists my birthplace.
As someone who resents being bothered by government unnecessarily, I get being left alone. But a woman provoking a confrontation like this which results in being detained 90 minutes to create a story doesn’t have too much to complain about. But Jeffrey, you seem more focused on Trump and I would suggest this sort of thing could have just as easily have happened under the time Obama was President.
Did you call out against fascism then?
Apparently Sugartits thinks she’s special and the rules don’t apply to her…
Evi,
And if we had heard about this with President Obama our response would be the same.
The woman and her children, American citizens, were stopped on a US thoroughfare, were NOT crossing the border and were questioned by Federal agents about their right to live here.
IF this had happened with Obama the right would have gone nuts, and you know it. And we would have agreed.
The double standard is by the American right (who have all become tRumpists approving of anything he does or says).
Should we set up roadblocks all around the nation stopping every car and demanding proof that every passenger is a citizen? Is that the America you want?
I call BS on all the harumphing here. These inland checkpoints have existed in CA, AZ and (I presume) TX for many years. They predate Obama. 90% of the time you’re simply waved through. Occasionally I’ve been asked if I’m a citizen. They are so casual I’ve always considered them fairly useless; although I assume there is a profile (excuse the term) that may trigger a more serious look.
At any rate, no we haven’t, and wouldn’t, be bitching about them – they were there under Obama.