Biden Administration Tells Arizona Using Shipping Containers to Plug Gaps in Border Wall Is Illegal

Biden Administration Tells Arizona Using Shipping Containers to Plug Gaps in Border Wall Is Illegal
Contractors begin stacking shipping containers in border fence gaps near Yuma, Ariz., on Aug. 12, 2022. (Courtesy of Arizona Governor’s office)
Zachary Stieber
10/18/2022
Updated:
10/18/2022
0:00

Using shipping containers to plug gaps in the U.S.–Mexico border wall violates federal law, a Biden administration official told top Arizona officials in a recent letter.

“The unauthorized placement of those containers constitutes a violation of federal law and is a trespass against the United States,” Jacklynn Gould, a regional director for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, told Arizona Homeland Security Director Tim Roemer and Arizona Division of Emergency Management Director Allen Clark in the missive. “That trespass is harming federal lands and resources and impeding Reclamation’s ability to perform its mission.”

Gould cited federal law that restricts public conduct on Bureau of Reclamation lands.

She asked officials to not place any additional shipping containers on federal lands or lands within the boundaries of Indian reservations, and said federal officials want to “discuss a way forward and requests your cooperation in the removal of the containers.”

Roemer, Clark, and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey did not respond to requests for comment.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection awarded a contract to close two gaps in the border barrier, according to the letter.

C.J. Karamargin, a spokesperson for Ducey, told the Arizona Republic that state officials aren’t acting until they see the contract.

Some 122 containers were placed along the border in Yuma County, including 80 on bureau lands and 42 on Cocopah Indian Tribe lands, according to federal authorities.

Ducey, a Republican, ordered the containers to be placed in August.

“Arizona has had enough,” Ducey said at the time. “We can’t wait any longer. The Biden administration’s lack of urgency on border security is a dereliction of duty. For the last two years, Arizona has made every attempt to work with Washington to address the crisis on our border.”

Yuma County Sheriff’s Office deputies said that the containers have helped prevent illegal immigrants from crossing into the United States.

“Our deputies have noticed traffic is slowing down,” one of them told KYMA-TV.

Jonathan Lines, the county’s supervisor, said that the number of gotaways—illegal immigrants who evaded capture—has been driven down due to the containers.

Customs and Border Protection’s Yuma Sector has recorded a sharp increase in illegal immigration since President Joe Biden took office, along with a number of other sectors. Illegal immigration has exploded under Biden, setting new records for fiscal and calendar year apprehensions. The number of gotaways has also jumped.

The Cocopah Indian Tribe issued a statement in support of the Biden administration’s action.

“We believe the Bureau is taking the necessary and appropriate action to resolve this issue,” the tribe said. “Beyond that, we will continue working side-by-side with local, state and federal law enforcement on securing the border.”