Pat Dollard | Young Americans

CNS:

Both the State and Justice Departments told Cybercast News Service this week that they have no information about whether Mexican authorities have arrested, prosecuted or convicted anyone for the murders of 128 Americans that the State Department reports took place in Mexico between Jan. 1, 2005 and December 31, 2007.

On April 14, the State Department issued an alert, which remains current, warning travelers that the “equivalent to military small-unit combat” was taking place across the southern U.S. border in Mexico.

“Dozens of U.S. citizens were kidnapped and/or murdered in Tijuana in 2007,” says the alert. “In some cases, assailants have worn full or partial police or military uniforms and have used vehicles that resemble police vehicles.” (See the travel alert )

At a May 20 State Department press briefing (see video), Cybercast News Service asked State Department Spokesman Sean McCormick how many Americans had in fact been murdered or kidnapped in the border region of Mexico in 2007. The department responded by posting a statement on its Web site and providing a link to its report of “non-natural deaths of Americans” around the world between Jan. 1, 2005 and Dec. 31, 2007.

The report, which the State Department said “is based solely on cases reported by American citizens to our posts abroad,” listed the deaths by country and where in a particular country the deaths happened. It also gave a cause of death. But it did not list the names, ages, or occupations of the victims, or any information about whether the government of the country where the “non-natural death” of an American had taken place had taken legal action pursuant to that death.

The report indicated that 667 Americans had been killed in Mexico by non-natural causes during the three years covered. A Cybercast News Service analysis of the report determined that 128 of these deaths were listed as either “homicides” (126) or “executions” (2) and that a majority of these murders (68) had taken place in Mexican cities immediately on the U.S.-Mexico border. Another 12 Americans, the report indicated, were murdered in other locations in Mexican states bordering the U.S.

At a May 27 State Department press briefing (see transcript), Cybercast News Service asked State Department Spokesman Sean McCormick what information the State Department has about “arrests, prosecutions and/or convictions” in the cases of the 128 Americans murdered in Mexico and what the department is “doing to ensure that justice is served for these Americans.”

“Right, it’s a significant number,” McCormick responded. “And certainly, we do follow up on these cases. I’ll see if we have statistics on the results of any cases that were brought as a result of charges against individuals who committed crimes against American citizens.” But State Department Spokesperson Nicole Thompson later told Cybercast News Service that the department does not track that kind of information.

“Generally, crime and punishment are issues that fall to the U.S. Department of Justice,” Thompson said. “As far as I know right now, I can’t provide you with a list of what’s been prosecuted and what hasn’t, but as I said before, that is something that falls to the Department of Justice, not the Department of State.”

Justice Department Spokesperson Laura Sweeney, however, told Cybercast News Service that the Department of Justice has no information on murder cases abroad, either.

“That is information that we don’t have,” said Sweeney, adding that the Mexican government would have jurisdiction over murders of American citizens in that country.

Both Thompson and Sweeney said Mexico’s attorney general might be able to provide information about the status of cases involving the murder of American citizens in Mexico. However, Cybercast News Service was unable contact that office.

In addition to the State Department’s travel alert for Mexico, the State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs maintains a Web page providing information for Americans considering travel to Mexico. “Low apprehension and conviction rates of criminals contribute to the high crime rate,” the page warns. “U.S. citizen victims of crime in Mexico are encouraged to report the incident to the nearest police headquarters and to the nearest U.S. consular office.”

The same page warns that Americans have been victimized by Mexican law enforcement officials.

“In some instances, Americans have become victims of harassment, mistreatment and extortion by Mexican law enforcement and other officials,” it says. “Mexican authorities have cooperated in investigating such cases, but one must have the officer’s name, badge number, and patrol car number to pursue a complaint effectively. Please note this information if you ever have a problem with police or other officials. In addition, tourists should be wary of persons representing themselves as police officers or other officials.”