Border Patrol hiring spree offers lessons as another immigration agency embarks on massive growth

A former police chief and convicted killer known as the “Devil in the Ozarks” has been captured after he escaped from prison, triggering a massive, nearly two-weeks-long manhunt in the mountains of northern Arkansas.

While asylum-seeking families and children dominate public attention, single adults represent a growing number of encounters with U.S. border agents.

A rescue helicopter couldn't land in the steep terrain, but authorities dropped water before border agents arrived and whisked them back to Tijuana, Mexico. Lopez quickly recovered and began planning another attempt to reach San Diego, where he hopes to earn a more steady living. The annual figure hasn't topped 14% since the Border Patrol began keeping track seven years ago. “It’s a little bit more of the revolving door than it used to be,” said Scott, the Border Patrol chief. Border Patrol agents may refer people for screening under the U.N. Convention Against Torture, but the bar is extremely high.

(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)WASHINGTON They are the most highly trained members of the Border Patrol, agents who confront drug traffickers along the U.S.-Mexico border and track down dangerous fugitives in rugged terrain. It's not just the Border Patrol Tactical Unit that has been called to duty in Portland. DHS has dispatched Air Marshals as well as the Customs and Border Protection Special Response Team and even members of the Coast Guard. The deployment of DHS agents and officers is legal, both under existing law and an executive order President Donald Trump signed June 26 to protect federal property and monuments. Former DHS officials concede the agency has worked with state and local law enforcement before, with the consent and cooperation of local authorities.