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Comment by tptacek | Hacker News Reader

The hundred-mile border thing is a myth; it refers to a SCOTUS holding that limits searches with a nexus to a border crossing to within that distance, but does not allow CBP to search people who haven't transacted directly with the border in some way.

ACLU, which I otherwise support wholeheartedly, does us all a mild disservice by perpetuating the myth, which is very widely believed.

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I live in San Diego and I can tell you that CBP most certainly does conduct searches on anyone passing through their secondary boarder checks. When I drive to LA I would say 1 in 5 times the secondary checkpoint is open in Oceanside and you have to slow down and at the very least get waived through. CBP has every right to stop and question you if they feel the need though.

Really? What about the checkpoints that are set up within this zone stopping and questioning people without reasonable suspicion or knowledge that person crossed the border at all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ea_VMY0UnA

The border search exemption applies only to people who have transacted directly with a border. Being 20 miles from a border gives CBP no special powers over ordinary citizens.

CBP routinely stops & questions all north-bound traffic on US 54 >20 miles north-east of El Paso. Am unsure of the distance, but they did request opening my rear hatch(SUV) to facilitate the dog sniffing my parts boxes and tools.

Am pretty sure the checkpoints on I-10 in western AZ are >100 miles N of the border, the Tohono O'odham* rez lies between I-10 & the border.

* The elders have also stated no wall will be built on their lands.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tohono_O%27odham#Border_issues

You might have hit one of these:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Border_Patrol_in...

Are there any cases of people suing the CBP for unlawful restraint? I remember seeing a video a while back where the guy wouldn't get out of the car, and they just broke the windows and took him out anyway.

No, it applies to people who the CBP agent reasonably suspect transacted directly with a border. Whether they actually transacted with a border or not is immaterial.

You are wrong about them being limited to right at the border. There are many border patrol stops way north of the border, south of Tucson, all areas around Tucson. These are at the least dozens of miles from the border.

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