Better Security May Save Lives
Because many illegal immigrants don't understand our laws here in the United States or English for that matter, some say Sunday’s deadly crash in Goliad County is yet another example of why we need tighter security along our southern border.
Fourteen people died when the Ford F-250 pickup they were in veered off U.S. 59 and crashed into a pair of trees near Berclair.
"We need to find a way to shut off the magnet of people coming in for work," says Texas State Rep. Aaron Pena. "There are people obviously hiring these people, and we need to have a procedure or mechanism for people to get hired or have a guest worker program."
Pena says these types of incidents cost both time and money.
"It’s straining the resources of funeral homes and law enforcement," the Hidalgo Democrat says. "Its unfortunate, but obviously they're breaking the law and we're left dealing with it.
LULAC's Baldomero Garza disagrees, arguing it could have been anyone in that truck, not just illegal immigrants.
"When you see that many people riding in a truck, they should be stopped," says Garza. "That's just an accident waiting to happen."
"What happened is certainly tragic," he says. "But it isn't anything new, where you've had overloaded vehicles get in an accident and people get hurt or killed."
However, critics point to the nine immigrants killed in April when the van in which they were being smuggled rolled over while fleeing the Border Patrol. Also, 19 people died in an unventilated trailer found near Victoria in May 2003, about 40 miles from the scene of the Goliad County crash.
