Deaths along Arizona border uncounted by Border Patrol

Between 2014 and 2015, fewer migrant deaths occurred between the US and Mexico, according to the US Border Patrol. At face value, this may seem good. However, the numbers do not hold up to state reporting that finds the numbers growing. Each year, thousands of migrants take a risk and cross the southwestern US border, navigating difficult terrain in extreme temperatures and often relying on unscrupulous human traffickers. It’s a danger difficult to calculate, particularly when there is a major discrepancy between the reported deaths from federal officials and Arizona state officials.In 2014, federal officials reported that 110 people died crossing the border into Arizona. That same year, Arizona officials reported 127 deaths. While the federal numbers are based on the reports of Border Patrol, state officials base their reports on the numbers from the medical examiner’s office in Pima County, which counts the totals from the four counties that are on the US-Mexico border, the Los Angeles Times reported...more