Border wall protesters were arrested in Cochise County – while dressed as endangered animals
Monday’s encounter — which occurred just east of the Santa Cruz County line — marks a continuation of local efforts to hinder border wall construction along the San Rafael Valley.
Arrest and charges
Farther west in Santa Cruz County, in the Lochiel area, protesters have been occupying a 200-year-old cottonwood tree along the border for nearly seven weeks.
Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputies arrested one protester in July, though county records show the case was closed two days later.
Santa Cruz County Sheriff David Hathaway, whose deputies made the arrest, has publicly criticized border wall construction and the Trump administration throughout his time in office.
The San Rafael Valley — a stretch of rolling grasslands — has seen similar tensions before.
In 2022, Republican Gov. Doug Ducey spearheaded the construction of a shipping container border wall in southwestern Cochise County.
Ducey’s makeshift border wall, much like the current construction, had its fair share of opponents.
Case background
That year, as temperatures turned frigid in November and December, protesters gathered along the construction site, dubbing it “Camp Ocelot.” Following a legal battle with the Biden administration, Ducey ultimately agreed to remove the wall, which cost $100 million in state funds to build.
