Members of the Civil Homeland Defense watch over a
group of illegal immigrants caught moving through the desert as they wait for
the Border Patrol to arrive. Many believe that U.S. border enforcement policy
has made human smuggling more lucrative. Fees for those who smuggle the
migrants across the border have tripled since 1993; today, migrants pay up to
$2,500 each. "All migrants needed before was assistance in evading the
Border Patrol, but once they were on the other side, they were home free,"
says Wayne Cornelius, director of the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies at the
University of California?San Diego. "Now, they need to be guided on a
two-to-three-day trek."
