Earlier this week, the requirement that all Mexican Border Crossing Cards contain biometric information about the bearer went into effect, and those who do not have a new card are not to be admitted to the US. However, in some places, the INS lacks the technology to read the biometric information encoded in the cards. Many find serious fault with the INS for this, since Congress mandated the advanced cards in 1996, giving the INS six years to prepare.
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Preliminary statistics from the Border Patrol show that nearly half of the people who died while attempting to unlawfully enter the US from Mexico last fiscal year died in Arizona. At least 320 in total died, 145 in Arizona. This is up substantially from the previous year, when 102 people died in Arizona. Only one other Border Patrol sector saw an increase in the number of deaths, San Diego, which saw 25 deaths, up from 17. Overall, the number of deaths decreased from last year’s number of 336. This was the second year the total number of deaths declined.
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