On June 7th, 2010 around 2:00 am both my mother and I were badgered by a Treviño officer at the Laredo border. Both my mother and I have been legally in the United States since 1955. I am an American citizen, my mother remains a legal alien because of mistreatments like these.

I have never been asked for a passport crossing the Laredo border and have lived in Laredo since the early sixties until I moved to Austin for college. I was mildly harassed telling me that they may or may not allow me into the United States where I own a home and work for AT&T. My mother was a different case. Officer Treviño in his bad Spanish asked my mother to give him el sobre which in Spanish means an envelope. My mother had her card in a little leather wallet Mr. Treviño thought was called an envelope in Spanish. My mother puzzled asked what sobre? He rudely told her if she did not give him el sobre he would detain her for two hours. That was totally uncalled for to a law abiding 78 year old senior with documentation.

Seems like every tine we cross this border there are other Treviño type officers misunderstanding their roll in protecting our borders with being totally impolite with brown people.

I have written about this to Senator Doggett before and must bring this incident to his attention once again.

Police officers do not have the right to badger law abiding people. I were not given an open invitation to be rude to the Vietnamese people while my two tours. What gives employees working off my tax dollars authority to speak to people like my 78 year old mother and myself in that tone of voice and be a smart ass about doing their job?

I would really like to see changes in the way these public servants speak to people that have a need to travel into thye United States.

Please let me know what you are doing to avoid abuse of power like we always encounter crossing the border.

Honestly I am tired of being afraid to go to Mexico because of these harassments. The last time I visited was 2007.

Rowena