A Border Patrol Agent Kidnapped & Raped a Teen Girl — Where Is The Outrage?

With nearly 5000 credible accusations of sexual assault against Border Patrol agents, this story is sadly not unique but too often the norm

Last week a federal jury convicted Former Customs and Border Patrol agent Aaron Mitchell of kidnapping and rape of a child. Mitchell approached a minor school girl and demanded “her papers.” Mitchell then arrested her, kidnapped her, and took her to his apartment where he raped her for several hours. Afterwards he returned her to school and threatened her to “not tell anybody.” The DOJ reported:

Mitchell found the child waiting for school to start, introduced himself as a law enforcement officer, and asked for her papers. Next, after flashing his police badge and credentials, Mitchell ordered the child into his car and explained that he was taking her to the police station. Instead, Mitchell drove the child miles away from her school, pulled over and restrained her hands and feet with two pairs of handcuffs. Once the defendant forced the victim into his apartment, he repeatedly sexually assaulted her over the course of several hours. The defendant had conducted numerous searches regarding rape and how to stop someone from screaming, and how long it takes to smother someone. 

Mitchell’s story is one example of consequences for an abusive Border Patrol Agent, for which he will likely spend life in prison. Yet horrifyingly, his story of facing some consequence is by no means the rule. And the lack of meaningful reform and accountability all but assures Mitchell won’t be the last to commit such horrific crimes. Let’s Address This.

A report released by the Department of Health and Human Services way back in 2019 documents nearly 5000 cases of sexual assault and rape committed by US Customs and Border Patrol Agents. The Guardian reports:

Almost 5,000 complaints of sexual abuse and harassment of migrant children in US custody have been filed over the past four years, according to government documents released this week. The allegations range from adult staff members having relationships with minors, and the showing of pornographic videos, to forcible touching. According to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) documents released on Tuesday, the reports date back to October 2015, during the Obama administration. However, most of the sexual abuse and harassment reported occurred since Donald Trump took office.

Little, if anything, has been done to follow up on these cases of widespread abuse and hold accountable those committing or enabling these cases of abuse. Another study by the NGO Freedom for Immigrants found a similar trend of abuse and lack of accountability. The study found that:

Between January 2010 and July 2016, the inspector general received 84 complaints of coerced sexual contact against U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which includes Border Patrol. The inspector general opened just seven investigations, none of which are known to have led to charges.

And under the Biden administration, this abuse of power by Border Patrol has continued. A comprehensive report by two human rights NGOs known as the Kino Border Initiative (KBI) and Advocacy for Human Rights in America (WOLA) conclude the following harrowing data. KBI and WOLA document thousands of cases of abuse, and thousands of cases of abuse that goes unaddressed, reporting:

KBI has assisted migrants in filing formal complaints about their treatment by CBP, and by Border Patrol in particular, since 2015. From this work, KBI concludes that abuse by U.S. authorities during the migration journey is unfortunately common. The prevalence of abuse by Border Patrol reported to KBI is likely an undercount, as it requires that migrants self-report to KBI staff and therefore recognize that their experience of being abused was not, in fact, just the normal cost of crossing the border. Further, many other migrants who faced abuses and were removed to Nogales may never have arrived at KBI and did not have a chance to report.

WOLA and KBI data on Border Patrol abuse of migrants

And sadly, the future does not look too bright. While the bipartisan immigrant bill (that Trump sank for his personal political ambitions) committed 1500 new Border Patrol agents, little thought has been given to past or future accountability for abusive agents. More agents without meaningful reform or accountability won’t stop the thousands of documented cases of abuse that appears to have become endemic in the Border Patrol ethos—it risks exacerbating them. Speaking of, Donald Trump is already promising immunity for abusive agents.

One of Donald Trump’s promises if reelected is to grant federal immunity to all police officers, which would ostensibly include Border Patrol. Doing so would further decrease oversight over Border Patrol, and enable further abuse of already marginalized migrants and American citizens alike.

And where is the outrage? For as much as MAGA politicians (falsely) allege immigrants are rapists and crime ridden, the data shows ongoing systemic abuse by U.S. Border Patrol agents against immigrants and U.S. citizens who don’t “look” American. The deafening silence from those who claim to condemn sexual abuse reveals that their true outrage is not against sexual abuse, but against the very idea that immigrants exist. Otherwise, they’d demand Donald Trump prosecute those Border Patrol agents who commit sexual abuse—not given them federal immunity.

Here’s the hard truth. The United States has never had a just immigration policy, and sadly that lack of justice has only further devolved over the last 40 years. A nation of laws must also be a nation of accountability for those who abuse their law enforcement power. In their press release announcing the conviction of the aforementioned pedophile rapist, the DOJ declared:

The heinous crimes committed against a young middle school student by an individual sworn to uphold the law are unspeakable. This defendant had a duty to protect his community but instead he abused his power. With this verdict, the jury has done us all a great service by holding accountable this former federal law enforcement official. The Justice Department will continue to stand up for sexual assault victims, especially children, and we will prosecute law enforcement officials who break the law with every tool at our disposal.

While Mitchell’s conviction is a step towards accountability, nothing will undo the horrific harm done to the young girl who suffered his abuse. And likewise, for the thousands of unaddressed cases of abuse, those victims continue to wait for some semblance of justice. For the above commitment from the DOJ to have meaningful accountability, it must apply to excise the systemic abuse that has infected our Border Patrol to prevent abuse, not just sparingly punish it. This means ridding the cancer of qualified immunity, comprehensive investigations into all cases of abuse, and meaningful accountability for those who commit and enable abuse.

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