Lawmakers Request GAO Review of U.S. Border Patrol's Critical Incident Teams
Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Bennie Thompson (D-MI), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform and Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee respectively, recently expressed concern regarding U.S. Border Patrol’s use of critical incident teams (CITs) in emergency situations and conducting internal investigations.
In a letter to Comptroller General and head of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) Eugene Dodaro, the Congress members urged an investigation into the agency, saying it does not have specific authority to investigate its agents' misconduct.
“With respect to the investigation of serious incidents involving CBP personnel, we understand that members of these Critical Incident Teams are sometimes tasked with assisting CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility and other local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies,” the members penned, "We would like to better understand the roles and responsibilities of these Critical Incident Teams, including their authorities, activities, training and oversight."
Preliminary questions Reps. Maloney and Thompson requested GAO investigate include center around the authority to conduct internal investigations, oversight procedures, and the extent to which the CITs receive specialized training.
Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Commissioner Chris Magnus received a similar letter from the members, requesting the parameters of this use of authority.
In recent years, human rights groups sought congressional investigations into CITs, which, "are not mentioned in the most recent version of CBP's Use of Force Administrative Guidelines and Procedures Handbook," according to Reps. Maloney and Thompson. Although, Border Patrol has previously acknowledged the existence of "teams with specialized evidence collection capabilities" in response to public pressure in November 2021.
"Despite the apparent lack of authority to investigate agent misconduct, Border Patrol appears to have created special teams of agents to investigate and collect evidence following incidents that may create criminal or civil liability, including allegations of excessive use of force," the letter to Commissioner Magnus stated.
Before February 7, 2022, Reps. Maloney and Thompson requested a response to the following inquires:
Detailed descriptions of their roles all Border Patrol teams involved in evidence collection, including all CITs;
Description of the legal authority under which CITs function, including federal statutes giving these teams the authority to engage in investigations beyond evidence collection;
CITs policy and procedure manuals, directives, guidelines, hiring materials, and training materials; and,
A complete set of CITs incident and misconduct reports since January 1, 2010, including interference with criminal, civil, or administrative investigations and a description of all steps taken by CBP in response to these reports.