Federal judge: Border Patrol in Arizona violated court order

A federal judge says the Border Patrol in Arizona violated court orders by failing to properly keep surveillance video pertaining to a lawsuit claiming the agency holds migrants in inhumane conditions.

Judge David Bury partially granted a motion on Monday to hold the Border Patrol’s Tucson Sector in civil contempt over video files it was legally required to provide but which were irreparably damaged.

The ACLU, National Immigration Law Center and Morrison and Foerster law firm filed the request in January in the ongoing litigation.

Bury previously sanctioned the Border Patrol over destruction of video evidence and has required it to provide clean mats and thin blankets to migrants held for longer than 12 hours and to allow them to wash or clean themselves.

The Border Patrol doesn’t comment on pending litigation.