Wes Kimbell on America’s Internal Checkpoints

During a
routine trip from San Diego to Phoenix in 2009, Pastor Steven
Anderson was stopped at an internal immigration checkpoint about 70
miles from the Mexican border. A stern-looking Border Patrol agent
asked Anderson to provide proof of citizenship and requested
permission to search his car. The persistent pastor declined both,
citing his Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable
searches and his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
Ultimately, a Border Patrol agent and a state police officer
simultaneously broke both windows of his car and shot the pastor
with Tasers from each side, delivering lengthy and repeated shocks
while Anderson repeatedly screamed in agony. The brutality was
captured on video. Anderson is a hero to the members of a growing
national cause, writes Wes Kimbell. A decentralized movement of
refuseniks is increasingly fighting back against the Border
Patrol’s shocking internal checkpoint system.

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