Angela Kocherga's Border Bureau Blog


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immigration



Recently by Angela Kocherga


Volunteers do "God's Work" in Drug War Zone in Mexico

12:25 PM Mon, Nov 16, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

Fall 09 067.jpgOn A chilly November morning volunteers pile into vans in the tiny Texas border down, Fabens. They're headed to one of the most dangerous places in Mexico, an area plagued by some of the worst drug violence, including numerous beheadings.

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Nuevo Laredo's New Normal under the Zetas

5:48 PM Fri, Nov 06, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

A few years ago Nuevo Laredo was the battlefield for rival drug cartels fighting to control the 1-35 corridors, a prime smuggling route that cuts through South Texas. These days it's peaceful but it's come at a price.

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Day of the Dead

6:29 PM Mon, Nov 02, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

Fall 09 061.jpgWith murders topping 2000, the Dia de los Muertos holiday in Juarez is not only a testament to tradition but a reminder of the drug war's toll on so many families in this border city. Photographer Hugo Perez and I went to the largest municipal cemetery, "San Rafael" where thousands of families remembered their loved ones.

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Reporters without Borders

1:54 PM Mon, Oct 19, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

Ambulance.jpgI was in New York at the invitation of Reporters without Borders, the international organization that fights to protect journalists around the world. The group just released its press freedom index , a report ranking countries. For those of us who work on the border, it's no surprise Mexico is...



Marfa's Magic

3:21 PM Tue, Oct 06, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

Marfa 022.jpgI recently escaped to a border region, of big skies and open spaces near Big Bend National Park. Our destination this trip: the tiny town of Marfa, known for its country charm and edgy art scene.

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Decriminalization pushed as War on Drugs turns 40

4:48 PM Tue, Sep 22, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

It's been 40 years since President Nixon used the term war on drugs to describe the U.S. enforcement policy. Four decades later we're coping with the rise of well-armed, powerful drug cartels, an explosion in drug related killings in Mexico and prisons crowded with drug offenders in the U.S.

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Security Tight as Mexico Celebrates Independence Day

4:14 PM Tue, Sep 15, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

Juarez 004.jpgAuthorities in Mexico are on alert as the country celebrates Independence Day with drug cartel hotspots under the tightest security.

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Mexican SWAT team rescues crew of hijacked plane

2:44 PM Wed, Sep 09, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

The hijacked Aeromexico flight from Cancun landed in Mexico City with 104 passengers onboard. Federal police boarded the flight and removed 9 the suspects and rescued the crew. The hijackers had released the passengers shortly after landing.

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Massacre at Rehab Center in Mexico

5:10 PM Thu, Sep 03, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

Summer 338.jpgA heavily armed commando gunned down 18 people in a rehab center in Juarez. The mass murders stunned people in a city that has grown nearly numb from all the bloodshed.The amount of blood we saw at the crime scene was shocking.

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Mexico City shares H1N1 lessons for new flu season

3:48 PM Tue, Sep 01, 2009 |
Angela Kocherga

Mexico Flu 001.jpgMexico City expects to see its first H1N1 flu cases this month. And as we all prepare for flu season the capital is sharing some lessons learned during the spring outbreak. Some of the changes in strategy may surprise you. I sat down with Mexico City's Health Secretary during a recent visit.

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Angela Kocherga

Border Bureau Chief Angela Kocherga files regular news stories for KHOU-TV from our bureau based in El Paso.