LAREDO, TX -- A pair of long-haul truck drivers were arrested and detained for 19 days after invoking their rights at an internal federal checkpoint on a highway in Texas. Tired of routine harassment at internal federal checkpoints, the two men politely refused to answer questions and recorded the encounter.
“You have a legal right to ask me a question. I have a legal right not to answer your question,” the driver said in a cell-phone recording.
Agents ultimately ripped the two men from the truck, confiscated the cell phone, and deleted most of the video. The driver and passenger were booked on felony charges and thrown in a South Texas jail for weeks without access to legal counsel.
“I didn’t get it, because I could never imagine [that] challenging government’s actions, talking about your rights, could get you arrested,” the passenger, Greg Rosenberg, said in an interview.
Detained for 19 Days: Immigration Checkpoint Refusal Gone Wrong - Reason.com
[video=youtube;hm-CUbZor4s]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hm-CUbZor4s[/video]
“You have a legal right to ask me a question. I have a legal right not to answer your question,” the driver said in a cell-phone recording.
Agents ultimately ripped the two men from the truck, confiscated the cell phone, and deleted most of the video. The driver and passenger were booked on felony charges and thrown in a South Texas jail for weeks without access to legal counsel.
“I didn’t get it, because I could never imagine [that] challenging government’s actions, talking about your rights, could get you arrested,” the passenger, Greg Rosenberg, said in an interview.
Detained for 19 Days: Immigration Checkpoint Refusal Gone Wrong - Reason.com
[video=youtube;hm-CUbZor4s]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hm-CUbZor4s[/video]
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