COPS Office & NSA Release New Publication on Border Law Enforcement

Unique Needs and Challenges of Border Law Enforcement and Promising Practices for Establishing a Criminal Interdiction Unit

The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) and the National Sheriffs' Association (NSA) hosted a series of roundtable and focus groups, supplemented by a needs assessment, to determine the needs, promising practices, and challenges of sheriffs' offices along the northern and southern borders of the United States. This report summarizes the findings of those discussions. Border sheriffs' primary needs are for personnel; updated equipment and infrastructure, particularly along the northern border; and support in information sharing and communication across all levels of government. The report also focuses on a widely shared promising practice—the establishment of dedicated interdiction units. A COPS Office / NSA training on rural interdiction is summarized, along with lessons learned from an interdiction unit in North Texas.