A U.S. Border Patrol agent shot the driver of a car carrying undocumented immigrants this weekend after the motorist tried to run him over, police said.

The driver suffered a gunshot wound to his thigh and was detained by Mexican police at a Tijuana hospital. Contrary to earlier reports, the Border Patrol agent was not injured.

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A new bill would make it easier for Haitians to become permanent residents and avoid deportation while their applications are processed. HR 3238, introduced by Rep Kendrick Meek, D-FL, expands on changes in immigration law made by the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Improvement Act, which was sponsored by Meek's mother, former Rep. Carrie Meek, in 1998. That law allowed Haitians who arrived in the United States before 1996 to become permanent residents. The bill would block the deportation of any Haitian who has an application pending. It would also include children who became adults before their applications could be considered.

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Having resolved an internal battle over a Canada-U.S. refugee agreement clearing the way for implementation of the "safe-third pact" in early 2004, Department Of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge met in Toronto with Deputy Prime Minister John Manley last week. They announced an expansion of post-Sept. 11 programs to speed the cross-border movement of goods and travelers. The safe-third agreement will force refugee claimants who travel to the US-Canadian border to file for asylum in the first country the individual entered, rather than allowing them to choose between the US or Canadian system.

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US immigration officials have released details of a special registration program that tracked foreign visitors in the United States following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Special registration required males 16 and older from 25 countries to register with immigration officials. Those who failed to register risked fines, detention, arrest or deportation. In total, 83,310 foreign visitors to the U.S. registered, and nearly 3,000 people were detained. The Special Registration program ended in March, but DHS officials plan to track the arrival and departure of foreign visitors to the United States at all points of entry by 2006.