Sasabe, Arizona – In the remote desert of Sasabe, Arizona — a southern corridor heavily crossed by asylum seekers in recent years and regularly traveled by humanitarians, law enforcement, armed groups and ranchers — what began as a weekly routine aid mission for 74-year-old volunteer Gail Kocourek took a frightening turn.
On March 12, she and 22-year-old fellow volunteer Evan Spry with Tucson Samaritans were stopped at gunpoint and handcuffed by plainclothes federal agents near the U.S.–Mexico border, an incident captured on video that is now raising questions about law enforcement intimidation tactics and the risks faced by humanitarian workers at the border.
The events, according to Kocourek and her legal representation, could lead to a lawsuit against the federal government as they await a response to a legal claim filed in July…