Proceedings magazine is a communication tool for the Coast Guard's Marine Safety & Security Council. Each quarterly magazine focuses on a specific theme of interest to the marine industry.
Issue link: https://uscgproceedings.epubxp.com/i/284910
7 Spring 2014 Proceedings www.uscg.mil/proceedings Boat crew from the Maritime Safety and Security Team at Galveston patrol the waters near the American/ Mexican border on Lake Amistad, Texas. U.S. Coast Guard photo. widely considered the "sovereign prerogative" of all states. 9 In the United States, the Supreme Court has forcefully articulated the government's sovereign rights to control the borders in several important cases. In one of these, the court stated that "[i]t is axiomatic that the United States, as a sover- eign, has the inherent authority to protect, and a paramount interest in protecting, its territorial integ- rity," and reasoned that "the Gov- ernment's interest in preventing the entry of unwanted persons and effects is at its zenith at the interna- tional border." 10 To this end, Con- gress has granted executive branch agencies, such as the Coast Guard, broad authority to conduct routine searches of persons and their per- sonal belongings at the border, without the normal protec- tions of reasonable suspicion, probable cause, or warrants. 11 For example, 19 U.S.C.§1496 authorizes customs offcials to search the baggage of persons entering the country, while 19 U.S.C.§1582 authorizes the detention and search of all persons arriving in the United States from foreign countries. These routine searches may consist of pat-downs for contra- band or weapons; removing outer garments such as jackets, hats, or shoes; emptying pockets, wallets, or purses; using drug-sniffng dogs; luggage inspections; or fngerprinting and photographing individuals. Customs personnel may also conduct routine vehicle searches, which can involve dismantling, removing, and reassembling a vehicle's fuel tank. 12 Furthermore, boats on inland waterways with ready access to the sea may be hailed and boarded with no suspi- cion whatsoever. 13 Recognizing that border checkpoints can be bypassed, fed- eral courts have extended a border enforcement agent's abil- ity to conduct routine border searches and seizures beyond the physical border, when the person or thing to be searched is at the functional equivalent of the border. 14 This doctrine is remarkable, because it allows customs personnel to exer- cise broad border search authority at locations other than the international border. The functional equivalent of the border is "the frst practical detention point after a border crossing or fnal port-of-entry." 15 As such, routine border searches may be conducted at the frst practicable location, such as an airport or seaport. The doctrine applies so long as three elements are met: • a reasonable certainty an object or person had crossed a border, • no opportunity for the object of the search to have changed materially since the crossing, • the search occurs at the earliest practical point after a border crossing. 16 The Coast Guard's Role in Border Enforcement Historically, the Revenue Cutter Service's original mission was to suppress smuggling and ensure that duties and taxes were paid to the federal government. This mission is a clas- sic example of a young nation exercising its sovereignty through border protection and by engaging in international trade. Throughout the Coast Guard's history, the agency has played a central role in border protection efforts. Moreover, Coast Guard members are designated by federal law to carry out the duties of customs offcers; and as such, these offcers have signifcant border search authorities under 19 U.S.C. §§482 and 1582, and they exercise them in close coordination with Immigration and Customs Enforcement or Customs and Border Protection, to protect the country from threats. 17 Three Coast Guard missions provide helpful examples of the service's role in protecting borders and enforcing U.S. sovereignty: • drug law enforcement, • immigration law enforcement, • international port security assistance. In alignment with national policy, the Coast Guard executes counter-drug operations designed to disrupt the fow of Spring2014_FINAL.indd 7 3/21/14 11:13 AM