Border Patrol Tightens Use-Of-Force Rules

New use-of-force rules that limit when weapons can be fired were issued Friday for Border Patrol agents, who have been under increasing criticism for their roles in more than 40 deaths since 2005, reports the Arizona Republic .

Border Patrol Chief Michael Fisher told agents not to shoot at moving vehicles that don’t pose a deadly threat, not to purposely place themselves in the path of moving vehicles and to avoid situations in which they have no alternative to using deadly force against rock throwers.

The Border Patrol and Customs and Border Protection also publicly released the full text of their use-of-force policies, which had been secret until a copy was leaked to the media in January.

Agency officials have been under growing public pressure to address a lack of transparency and accountability in cases of questionable use of deadly force by agents who have been criticized for shooting at people in Mexico who were throwing rocks at them across the border fence.