daholt@dallasnews.com (Douglas Holt)
http://www.dallasnews.com

FBI upgrades probe into border shooting
Full civil rights investigation planned in Marine's slaying of teen,
agent says

By Douglas Holt / The Dallas Morning News

EL PASO The FBI has been given "carte blanche" to pursue a civil
rights investigation into the shooting of an 18yearold shepherd on the
border by a Marine on a drug surveillance mission, an FBI official said
Friday.

After receiving the FBI's preliminary investigation of the May 20 death
of Esequiel "Zeke" Hernandez, Department of Justice lawyers in
Washington told the FBI this week to upgrade its inquiry into a
"fullfield" investigation, said Terry Kincaid, the FBI resident
agentincharge in Midland.

"The Department of Justice obviously felt this situation called for
quite a bit more detail," Agent Kincaid said. "We will pretty much look
at everything and leave no rock unturned associated with the case. It
will be a very detailed and complex undertaking."

Agent Kincaid, who is heading the investigation, declined to estimate
how long the inquiry would take. The number of FBI agents assigned to
the task has not been determined, but he said he was given "pretty much
carte blanche" for "as many as I need."

"If the investigation indicates that there was a violation of civil
rights associated with this case, we intend to find it," he said.

In addition to the ongoing Justice Department investigation, Rep. Lamar
Smith, RSan Antonio, plans to hold congressional hearings on the
shooting next month.

Military troops have been used since 1989 to conduct covert surveillance
missions of drug trafficking routes. The Marines involved in the
Hernandez shooting were dressed in heavy camouflage and were acting
under the direction of the U.S. Border Patrol.

The four Marines who were on patrol have told authorities that Mr.
Hernandez was shot after he had fired two shots and was preparing to
fire a third, placing them in "imminent danger."

Mr. Hernandez's death angered residents of the tiny Big Bendarea
community of Redford, where he was shot while tending his family's
goats, and sparked protests from El Paso to Washington.

On Aug. 14, a Presidio County grand jury which included a Border
Patrol supervisor on duty the night of the shooting, a retired Border
Patrol agent and an active agent's wife declined to issue criminal
charges against the Marine who shot Mr. Hernandez, Cpl. Clemente
Banuelos.

Jack Zimmermann, a lawyer representing Cpl. Banuelos, said he welcomed
the investigation because "the shooting was justified."

"A grand jury found no probable cause, and the Justice Department will
find no problem," he said.

The Pentagon has ordered a temporary pullout of ground troops deployed
on U.S. soil pending a policy review.