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Alonso Castillo / Reuters, file
Relatives pray beside a coffin containing the body of 16-year-old Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez during his funeral in Nogales, Mexico, on Oct. 14. A U.S. Border Patrol agent fired at suspected drug smugglers across the border into Mexico late Oct. 10, and the teen was hit seven times, an autopsy showed.
A Mexican teenager killed when the U.S. Border Patrol opened fire on a group of rock throwers in Mexico last year was shot at least seven times from behind, an autopsy by Mexican authorities showed.
Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez, 16, was shot as agents fired into Nogales, Mexico, after responding to reports of drug trafficking on Oct 10.
An attorney for the Elena Rodriguez family, Luis F. Parra, released a copy of the Mexican medical examiner's report on Thursday.
The autopsy was conducted several hours after the shooting. It found that the teen had been struck in the head, neck and body by at least seven bullets fired from behind him. It described several other bullet injuries, some of which may have been exit wounds.
Following the shooting, Mexican authorities condemned the U.S. Border Patrol's use of lethal force and called for a timely and transparent investigation.
In a written statement, the Border Patrol said the incident began shortly before midnight on October 10 when agents responded to reports of two suspected smugglers, who they watched drop drugs on the Arizona side of the border.
The smugglers then fled back across the border into Mexico and "began assaulting the agents with rocks." An unnamed agent opened fire after the suspects refused orders to stop, the patrol said.
News pictures taken shortly after the October shooting showed Elena Rodriguez' apparently lifeless body face down on the sidewalk a few yards south of the border fence, which consists of parallel steel barriers.
Alonso Castillo / Reuters, file
A cross is seen at the U.S.-Mexico border near the site where Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez was found dead.
The FBI has been leading the investigation into the shooting. A spokesman for the agency's Phoenix division declined on Thursday to comment on the autopsy or the continuing investigation.
Parra did not immediately respond to a request on Thursday for comment on the autopsy's findings.
Elena Rodriguez was the second Mexican teenager killed in a clash with the Border Patrol in the Mexican border city in less than two years. In January 2011, an agent fired into Mexico, killing 17-year-old Ramses Barron of Nogales.
The Elena Rodriguez shooting came more than a week after a Border Patrol agent was shot dead near the border in an apparent friendly fire incident.
Arizona is on a major route for Mexican smuggling networks hauling drugs and illegal immigrants to the United States, and running guns and cash profits back south to Mexico.
Related:
Border Patrol shoots Mexican man from across border
Arizona ranchers demand security at the border
Sources: Friendly Fire killed Border Patrol agent
Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.
Leave a Comment:
shouldnt smuggle drugs stay on your side
Moral of this story never bring a rock to a gunfight!!! Were any humans injured?
That's right Mexico, you tell em! The gall of the US Border Patrol trying to stop your drug smugglers from transporting drugs into their country. Just for that you should send another 11 million illegals, oops...undocumented workers into the US.
My front door is open. Sneak in the back, and get shot.
They had already committed a crime , then stopped to assualt patrol since they had gone back on sacred turf . Shoot them !! Their friends might think twice. We should have been tough on the other 11 Million some time back. We don't owe these people anything, they broke the law.
Stop blaming drug laws. If losers quit using then the problem would cease
Stay in Mexico. Keep your drugs over there.
You don't stop when ordered by police, you suffer the consequences. With several officers shooting, I'm sure it wasn't 7 shots from ONE officer's gun. It's that much less drugs into this country and that many less "undocumented" people we have to support.
Too bad Obozo wasn't there to welcome that group of drug smugglers to America, they were only bringing in dope to stimulate the ecomony, and Obozo wants more future democrates. Wall what wall, Obozo doesn't want a border, he just wants to hammer on law abiding citizens.
"Mexican authorities condemned the U.S. Border Patrol's use of lethal force" What hypocrites...they use lethal force on the southern border of Mexico! Mexico needs to fix its problems and then their people wouldn't need to come here to find work. The living situation of most in Mexico is diplorable. I don't blame them for wanting to come here, but they need to do it legally. If the shooting was at night, the chances are the border patrol didn't see him turn around...some how, when Mexicans get killed trying to cross the border illegally, it is always the Border Patrols fault. If you are doing something ILLEGAL, than you are risking your life PERIOD! I am so tired of people blaming others for their own choices.
As for the political comments, both the Democrats AND the Republicans have let this country down. Most of Congress are out for themselves, not what is best for this country.
God help us all.
Jose wasn't peacefully attempting to cross the border so he could mow someones lawn. He was attempting to bring grass clippings of another sort to the US.
They need to shoot more of them! Just ATTEMPTING to cross the border illegally should bring a death sentence!
Wow,
I wonder if soneone said the same thing about your forefathers. Legal or otherwise. Racist scum like you do not deserve to live in a country that fosters equality for all races.
Racist scums hold people of color to lower standards than white people. White people have to wait years, pay thousands of dollars and learn English and American history before they become citizens. racist Hispanics think its ok if you're brown to pack up some drugs and sneak in. Almost 40% of all violent offenders in the California penal system are illegals who came across this border. Illegals are bankrupting America and non-partisan estimates say Obama's plan to make 11 million illegals citizens so they can vote for the swine we call Democrats will cost American taxpayers 27 BILLION a year.
Shooting someone in the back cannot be justified. Ever.
remeber that when they shoot at us. go out and tell them dont shoot.
Our current leadership has sent very mixed messages about the Mexican/US Border.
Rocks are weapons, and have been used in executions since the beginning of time. It was quite valid to start shooting. I say, keep shooting, so it's quite clear that our borders do in fact mean something to quite a few Americans.
Too Fing bad! get tougher on the border.
Seven times in the back, neck and head huh? Good shooting, now lets work on the grouping shall we?
And for all of you screaming the Boarder Patrol Agent used excessive force, tell you what, you let me throw a few rocks at you and decide how much force is too much. Fraking winey a$$ idiots.
Wow. Good to see all the racist anti-Mexican hate spewers have responded.
The kid's presence in the middle of the night is suspicious, I'm sure he wasn't just out there sightseeing. Seven bullets to the back seems a bit excessive to take down a kid armed with stones while running away or facing away from the gunman. But after the immigration laws that were passed in Arizona, I would not be surprised that border agents there view themselves as more than than over glorified crossing guards they truly are. I’m glad they’re defending us from teenagers armed with rocks. As for the drug trafficking thing; there would not
be a problem if our country did not have a high demand for such things.
I bet that guard must have thought; "that kid threw a rock at me, how dare him. He deserves to be shot seven times while running away." In my opinion, this border agent is just another coward with a superiority complex and a gun. When you’re going to kill someone, you can at least look them in the eye before you do it.
I hate to see all of the anti american haters on this blog, all demonrats.
To me, "anti-american" is someone who denies the fact that unless they were born Native American, then they are the seed of some poor immigrant as well, one whom arrived legally or illegally is irrelevant. Unless you're Native American you're an intruder on this soil.
Take your "I was here first" mantality and go back to being the bully on the playground where you belong.
If -
Grow up! Borders when the US was formed weren't the same thing at that time and you know it. In this day and age, the US has a defined and recognized border (well except for the riff-raff that does illegal crossigs).
The Native Americans greeted the Europeans as friends when they arrived, after all, who can own their mother? With the European settlers came the idea of borders and land ownership.
So, understand this, while I do not condone what the Europeans did when they committed genocide against the Native Americans, I do understand what happened and do not hold their children today to blame for the faults of their ancestors.
Oh, and for the record, I have Cherokee ancestry and can prove it.
Pretty tough words coming from someone whom has never spent a night on our Southern Border dealing with known drug cartels whom are heavily armed.
To equate this type of work to a Crossing Gaurd only displays your level of ignorance to what is really going on in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.
Our schools, hospitals and jails are all overcrowded and drug and gang activity is out of control. In parts of our cities, English is a second language.
This is why we refer to it as Protecting Our Border. Understand?
usay--dont smuggle drugs come across the border illegally would still be alive.
This always cracks me up- because it's no longer valid to care about your country or it's borders and have an opinion about it- in fact, it makes you racist.
If you don't support the current administration's policies- you are a racist.
If you want to own a weapon because the constitution allows it- you likely dream about killing African Americans all day and obviously -racist.
Don't support gay marriage- racist.
I think you might be the narrow minded one fixated on racism.
Headlines in Five years: ( Drones take out five teenager partying at the border ;) We thought they where AQ with bottle rockets...Folks in five years the Police will have 5000 drones over the Skies of the US and in 10 yrs they will 20000...You'll get some happy trigger killing Americans ...Welcome to 1984 but a little later....We'll be BACK
I don't give a hoot to what he was or was not doing, he was only armed with rocks so why did these brainless cowards have to use guns. I hope the big shot guards are proud of themselves for killing a unarmed person. Sure the kid was doing wrong, but kill him in the back, again these guards were cowards.
Said the anonymous coward from behind his computer screen.
We should buy full-page ads in Mexican newspapers with this guy's picture on it. CAPTION: " if you try to take drugs into the US, you are next"
Hey! he was seen dropping drugs over into our country, so what is the big problem?? You want to play with the big boys, you get treated just like the big boys! Great job, Border Patrol!!
I had to stop reading the comments and take a shower after reading all of the CRAP that people are spewing, you all are a bunch of racist fools! How dare you celebrate the death of another HUMAN BEING? I don't care if he's Brown, Black, White, Blue or Green, he's a person and his race and color should have nothing to do with this conversation. You all scream that people are playing the "race card", we wouldn't call you racist if you weren't racist. Just go back and read what you wrote and then tell me you are a christian, a patriot, civilized or even fair, because you are none of those things. IMHO
Blah, blah, blah. As far as i am concerned he committed suicide. The racism of Hispanics in America is awful. Their view is that people who look like me don't have to follow the laws.
It is just a pity that the US Government will not buy our Agents a handgun powerful enough to down somebody with one or two shots.
Come on Obama, upgrade!
Rocks can be a dangerous weapon. You could kill someone with a rock. Sorry I don't feel sorry for him.
Hhhmmmm...found dead on the sidewalk...but his memorial cross 'near the site' where he was found is in the middle of nowhere according to the photo.
Shot and hit seven times...in the dark...at midnight...that is some pretty accurate shooting..even in daylight...almost too accurate.
Too many fuzzy ends here...