Feinstein Plans Border Drug Crackdown Bill

Criticizing a federal practice that sent more than 1,000 suspected drug traffickers back to Mexico, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said Wednesday that she and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) will introduce legislation making it easier to arrest and prosecute drivers whenever drugs are found during vehicle inspections at the border.

The legislation is being drafted in response to a Times article Sunday reporting that one out of four suspected Mexican traffickers are simply being excluded from the country because of overcrowding at San Diego’s federal jail and prosecutorial discretion.

“Prosecutors have told me that drivers of vehicles carrying drugs often plead ignorance to the presence of drugs, and that, without the ability to prove otherwise, it is difficult to prosecute these cases,” Feinstein said in a statement. “Clearly that must change. It is unacceptable to have laws against drug smuggling and then simply slap traffickers on the wrist and send them home.”

The two Democratic senators are drafting legislation that would hold the driver of a vehicle crossing the border responsible for making sure no drugs are being transported, said Boxer spokesman David Sendretti.

Government figures show hundreds of suspected smugglers have been sent back to Mexico under a program initiated in 1994 by the U.S. attorney’s office in San Diego. Last year, more than 600 suspects were excluded from this country pending an immigration hearing, but without prosecution. Officials project the number will exceed 800 this year.

The Times found that most cases involved at least 50 pounds of marijuana. One suspect was caught with 32 pounds of methamphetamines, another with 37,000 Quaalude tablets. On Wednesday, Assistant U.S. Atty. John Kramer said prosecutors would be reviewing some cases to see why they were not prosecuted.

Gov. Pete Wilson has called on GOP leaders in Washington to conduct congressional hearings, and Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole has asked Atty. Gen. Janet Reno to explain whether the Clinton administration supports the exclusion program.

Federal prosecutors in San Diego have said that the program is an important prosecutorial tool, principally targeting first-time Mexican offenders who face the sanction of losing permanent residency in the United States or their border crossing cards. They noted drug seizures went up 25% last year, and the number of felony prosecutions has doubled.