 |
|
|
HOW TO GET IN TROUBLE WITH U.S. CUSTOMS
|
|
April 20, 2009. You have to feel sympathy for Terrance Clark. Despite trying to do the right thing, he dug himslf into a deeper and deeper hole. All because he didn't follow the first rule of clearing customs: No one except the vessel's master is to leave the boat (or even lounge on the dock) until customs is cleared.
The San Juan Islander newspaper published this story, and graciously granted permission for us to re-post it here.
Boater fined $5K by Homeland Security
Frequent visitor to Friday Harbor will never return
By Sharon Kivisto
Over the years, he's taken Boy Scouts camping on San Juan Island, dined in local restaurants, shopped in Friday Harbor stores, watched orcas swim off the west side, rented mopeds and bicycles, enjoyed movies in the Palace theater. But after his treatment by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (U.S.CBP) Agents in Friday Harbor Terrance Clark, a dentist from West Linn, Oregon and his family have crossed Friday Harbor off their list of vacation destinations.
Clark was fined $5,000 April 1, 2009 for failing to dock at the U.S. Customs dock and phone in immediately upon arriving from Canada. He says when he researched the requirements prior to making his first boating trip from Friday Harbor to Victoria, he was told the procedure when arriving after 5 p.m. was to call the phone number posted on the Customs office door.
The actual procedure is to dock at the Customs dock on the breakwater and call the number posted there immediately. There is a camera at the dock to check in.
Because of the inclement weather and his lack of knowledge about the correct procedure Clark took his grandson and the two other people onboard to their Friday Harbor hotel right after they tied up at their slip. All eight members of their party (four traveled on the ferry) ate dinner. Then he went to the Customs office under the San Juan Island Yacht Club and called the listed number. It directed him to another number.
After speaking to someone who was reading from a list of questions, the upshot was a Border Patrol Agent and a San Juan County Sheriff's Deputy arrived on the scene. Clark said the agent was rude, intimidating and didn't show a badge or identify himself. The deputy was polite. Due to the 1974 privacy act, no information about the incident is available from the U.S. CBP.
On the phone, Clark had said there were four people in his boat. The agent asked how many people were in his party. Clark responded "eight". Unfortunately for him when answering the questions, he differentiated between the number of people he traveled to Canada with as a group and the number of people on his boat.
The two answers were taken as lying and the situation went downhill rapidly from there. Clark details the entire incident in his letter posted below.
He ended up being interrogated the next day. After the interrogation, he was forced to sit outside in the freezing weather for 90 minutes, while the agents talked about this case. They told him he now had a record and fined him $5,000.
"The goal of the CBP is informed compliance,"U.S. CPB Chief Tom Schreiber said, "It is not to issue penalties." He is out of the Bellingham office and is not involved in the incident. Very few penalties are issued, he said.
While he can't talk about any specific cases, he did say U.S. Customs takes security very seriously and if someone willfully is not adhering to the rules and is providing false or misleading statements they will be fined. Also someone who the agents believe knows the procedures would not be treated the same way as someone who is uninformed.
Clark can appeal the fine to the Blaine office for mitigation. The $5,000 amount is the standard amount under the law but is often reduced through the fines and penalties process.
LETTER FROM BOATER
By Terrence A. Clark, DMD
My family and I planned a vacation to the San Juan Islands in Washington State, with a side trip over to Victoria, BC, on 3-30-09 thru 4-01-09.
In preparation for the trip, I wanted to be sure I was prepared and followed all the regulations for crossing the border into Canada and returning again to the United States by boat. So on, or about, March 20, 2009, I searched for “US Customs Friday Harbor, Washington” on Google. Under the web site heading "Come by Boat", www.nps.gov/archive/sajh/Come_by_boat.htm I found the U.S. Customs, Friday Harbor Office: (360)378-2080.
I called this number and a woman answered the phone. I did not get her name. I told her we were coming by pleasure boat to Friday Harbor on Monday, March 30th for a family vacation. I told her we were going to travel by boat to Victoria, BC, weather permitting, on Tuesday, March 31st, for a half day visit to the Royal BC Museum and some site seeing, then return back to Friday Harbor that same evening.
I asked what we needed to do to cross the boarder into Canada and to return back into the United States, i.e. passports, boat registrations, documents, etc. Relative to the Canadian regulations, she told me that we would need to check in with the Canadian Customs and gave me the phone number to call, 1-888-Can-Pass (226-7277).
For US Customs she told me we would need to check in with the US Customs in Friday Harbor when we got back in the country. I said I had been in Friday Harbor before and asked if she was talking about the US Customs Office located on the hill on the shore of the Marina there in Friday Harbor, and she said, "Yes". She said we could not bring any citrus fruits, garden vegetables, etc. back into the country, as well as alcohol, firearms, etc.
I told her I was bringing my 10 year old grandson, as well as my adult son and his wife, and what documents did we need. She said I needed to have a driver's license and proof of citizenship for anyone over 16 years old, and that a passport would be preferable. She said for my grandson I would need a certified copy of his birth certificate and a letter from his parents stating that I was authorized to take him out of the country. She said I would need the vessel registration for the boat and to be sure the boat would pass a US Coast Guard inspection.
I asked her what the hours of operation were for the US Customs in Friday Harbor, and she told me the office was open from 8-5 on week days. She said if I came in after office hours that I could check in by phone and the number was posted on the office door. She further stated, "Most people just call on the phone and as long as you are not bringing something illegal into the country, it isn't a problem at all." I then called the Canadian Customs and received similar information. I then called the US Customs again and asked if there was any documentation from Canada that I would need to bring with me showing that I had been there, and the woman I spoke with (I don't know if it was the same woman) indicated no documentation from Canada was needed.
So in accordance with everything I was told, I made preparations to be compliant with every detail. I made sure all the adults had their passports and got a certified birth certificate for my grandson and a letter from his mother and father. I made sure the boat was fully compliant in every way with US Coast Guard regulations and verified that the vessel registration was current, safety equipment was up to date, etc.
My friend and his family also planned to accompany us on this trip. He also had a small pleasure craft and was going to bring his wife and two of his children, and trailer his boat up to Anacortes along with us. (I have a 23' Bayliner Trophy fishing boat, my friend has a 26' Sea Cat fishing boat.) I shared all that I learned about Customs and border crossing with my friend and he also got his documents in order and boat ready for inspection.
Therefore, having the understanding that everything was in order, we trailered our boats from the Portland, Oregon area (I live in West Linn and my friend lives south of Wilsonville) and came as planned to Friday Harbor. We launched out of Anacortes, Washington from the public boat launce west of the Washington State Ferry Terminal. I arrived at Friday Harbor in the afternoon of Monday, March 30th. I checked in with the Harbor Master and was assigned a boat slip on the commercial dock nearest to the shore. I told them my friend was delayed but would also be coming and the woman in the Harbor Master's office told me that he could tie up right behind us on the same commercial dock, and that he could register when he got in. There were very few visitors/tourists this time of year and the docks were wide open for availability.
My friend was delayed because he had difficulty launching his boat, due to a very low minus tide. He had to wait over four hours for there to be enough water to get his boat off the trailer. He was further delayed getting to Friday Harbor because part way along the trip, one of his twin outboard motors failed and he had to complete the trip on a single engine. He got to the dock after the Harbor Master had left for the day, so he checked in the next morning. My friend and his family, along with my son and his wife, all checked in at the Earth Box Motel in Friday Harbor, where they had reservations for two nights. My ten year old grandson and I slept in the boat (his choice!). Although the weather was very cold and breezy, it was certainly safe and so we traveled Tuesday morning to Victoria. Because my friend's boat was not running well, the four of them got in our boat with us and we all went together to Canada. The water was very rough around the south east point of Vancouver Island for the last 6-8 miles of the trip and some of our group got sea sick.
We tied up at the public dock in Victoria Harbor and spoke to the woman there who registers boaters. I asked her where the Canadian Customs office was and she gave me their phone number to call. When I called them, they asked where I was, who had traveled with me to Canada, their names, and their birth dates, my boat registration, place of origin, purpose of our trip and estimated time we would be spending in Canada. They asked if I was bringing in any alcohol, guns, or cash in excess of $10,000, or if I had any “picked fruit”, like citrus, apples, etc. I gave him all the information he asked for and told him we would be leaving around 4:30pm. He was a very pleasant man and he said he did not need to inspect our boat. He gave me a Canadian Customs Registration Number, had me write it on a piece of paper and post it in the window of the boat, and then wished us a very enjoyable time in Canada.
We went to the Royal BC Museum, ate lunch at the Spaghetti Factory, and enjoyed some limited site seeing. Because the water had been so rough, we put the all the passengers, except my friend and I, on the city bus so they could ride to Sydney, and thus avoid the rough water at the point of the island. We then departed the Victoria dock at about 4:30pm, exactly as planned, and motored to Sydney on the east side of Vancouver Island, where we simply pulled up to the public dock, put the passengers on board, and immediately pushed off for our return to Friday Harbor. The water was much more protected from the westerly winds and we got back to Friday Harbor about 6:30pm, and no one turned green! Upon arriving in the bay, we noted that the Customs Office was dark and closed for the day, as expected.
The kids were very tired and hungry so we went up to eat at the Front Street Ale House. After dinner, we took the families back up to the Earth Box Motel, where they relaxed a bit and the kids went in the pool. I then gathered my grandson from the pool, got him ready for bed, and we walked back down to the boat where I put him to sleep. I then walked back up to the Customs office to get the phone number I had been told was on the door, to call and check in, exactly as I had been instructed. When I called the 1-800-562-5943 number listed on their door, according to my phone log at 9:53pm, I got an answering machine that referred me to another number. I did not have a pen to write it down, so I walked back to the boat and got a pen, called the number at 10:05pm and wrote down the new number I needed to call.
I immediately called the new number 360-988-2971, according to my phone log, still at 10:05pm and was put on hold. After being transferred from person to person, I eventually was asked if I was NEXUS, to which I had no idea what they were talking about and I said, "No", and before I could even ask what on earth NEXUS was, I was put back on hold again. After some more waiting another voice asked if I was I-68, and again I had no idea what they were talking about and again said "No", and again before I could ask what they were talking about, I was once more put on hold.
After more waiting, another man's voice said he would need to ask me some questions. He asked who I was, where I was calling from, where had I been, etc. and it was obvious he was reading the questions. He asked what the boat registration number was and I told him it was OR312ZZ. He then asked what the decal number was on the boat. I told him I thought that the decal number was the registration number I just gave him, and asked if he wanted the small Oregon bi-annual registration tag number? He said he didn't know what it was either and admitted he was just reading a form, and didn't actually know what it was asking for.
He then said he would just go on to the next questions. He then asked who was traveling on my boat, and I told him my son, his wife, and my grandson. He then asked for their full names, birth dates, and pass port numbers. I told him they were in bed at the hotel and I would be happy to phone the information to him in the morning, or if it was important, I would go wake them up and call him back, which I was totally willing to do. He then put me on hold again. After more waiting eventually someone came back on and asked where I was tied up at the dock, and I told him, to which he then said to stay with the boat and an officer would be coming to meet me.
After hanging up, I waited nearly 30 minutes and then called them back at 10:37 pm and asked if I was speaking to the same person, to which he condescendingly said "No, but I know all about your case". I asked if he had any idea when the officer would be coming and he said in another 15-30 minutes. I thanked him and continued to wait. At nearly 11:00 pm two men arrived at my boat, the local sheriff, and CBPO Kevin D. Holmes, #02850.
Mr. Holmes did not identify himself but simply started asking me questions. He asked who I was and if I was the owner of the boat. He asked how many people had traveled with me to and from Canada. I told him eight, my group and my friend and his family. Mr. Holmes got obviously agitated and said he had been specifically told there were only four people on the boat and now he has learned through his own questioning that there were eight.
He demanded to know why I had lied to the people on the phone. I was very taken back and said I had not lied to anyone. I told him that I had only been asked how many people were on my boat, not how many people had gone to Canada, and I had told them truthfully. I assumed they were asking about my immediate family group. I told him I was very sorry for the misunderstanding but there was no intent to mislead or lie in any way.
He obviously didn't believe me and continued his lecture to me on how I was in gross violation of the law. He said I should have 1) tied up to the Customs dock, 2) kept all my passengers on board the boat, 3) called the phone number on the door of the closed kiosk on the dock, and waited there until an office came to inspect the boat, and 4) answer truthfully whenever asked.
I told him I was very sorry, but I had done exactly what I had been told to do. I told him I had called the Friday Harbor Customs office almost two weeks before I had made this trip and was doing exactly what they had told me to do. He demanded to know who I had talked to, and I told him I did not ask for her name, and she did not volunteer it. I said that I was very sorry but I didn't know the protocol was different than what I had been previously told. I told him I had done exactly what I was told to do, and if I had been told to do the things he was describing, I absolutely would have done it.
I had no intention of breaking protocol in any way and had done everything I knew of in advance; to be sure I would do everything according to the letter of the law. I was well aware of the fact that things have changed since 9-11 and I told him I had done everything I knew how to be sure I was totally compliant with all the new protocols. He demanded to see all our documentation for everyone that had traveled to Canada.
I gave him my passport and documentation for my grandson. I told him that everyone else was in bed up at the hotel, since it was now well after 11pm, and I asked if it would be OK if I brought the documents up to their office in the morning. He was very curt and told me to call and wake them up or he would have no problem knocking on their door right now himself; and then smugly stated, "I've done it before!" I called on the cell phone and got my son out of bed, and he went to my friend's room next door and woke his family up.
Officer Holmes then said he would go directly to the hotel and get all their documents personally, which he did, and that we would all have to meet him at the US Customs office at 9am the next morning. He said, "Don't come at 8am when we open because I will need at least 30-60 minutes to discuss this case with my boss before you arrive." In complete contrast to Officer Holmes, the Sheriff was very polite and friendly during our conversation, while Officer Holmes was condescending, abrupt, accusatory, and unprofessional in his demeanor.
After Officer Holmes and the Sheriff left I was quite surprised they had never even set foot on my boat, never conducted any type of inspection, never asked me what I had done in Canada, who I had talked with, what I had brought back with me (fruits, firearms, alcohol, money, etc.), never asked about drugs, money, illegal activities of any kind, no drug sniffing dogs, no explosive residue testing, etc., etc, etc. I really had no idea what to expect, but was told my boat would be inspected upon returning to the United States. It was obvious they did not want to conduct any kind of real investigation; rather they only wanted to harass me for not following their protocol.
It also seemed obvious that they did not consider me, my passengers, or the boat to be a threat of any kind, or to be in violation of any law. They never asked to see my registration, proof of ownership, insurance, or any other documents relating to my boat. They apparently only wanted to be punitive because I had not tied up to their dock, but instead called from the number on their office door, which is only about 100 yards away from the dock kiosk and in complete visual site from each other. The woman I had talked with specifically told me to check in at the office, described where it was located, and told me if we were after hours, to simply call the number on the door. No one ever mentioned any of the protocol described by Officer Holmes, nor is it stated on the sign posted on their door.
The next morning I brought all the children and the adults up to the US Customs office as instructed. The weather was bitter cold, and when we all came in, Officer Holmes told us he only needed to see me, there wasn't room for everyone in the Customs Office, and everyone else but me should leave. He told me I would need to meet with his boss, who was not in the office at the moment but would return shortly, which he did before the conversation was over. His boss, Officer Thomas H. Barnes, CPBO, #114, told me that I was in gross violation of the law. Officer Barnes is a tall and imposing person, who stands close to you and is intimidating in his manner. He began asking me how long I had been on shore before calling. I said I thought it was an hour or two.
I told him we had gone to dinner, taken everyone to the hotel and then I had come to the Customs Office to get the phone number and make the call. He demanded to know where we had eaten dinner and wanted to see the receipt. I had the receipt still in my pocket and gave it to him, where it says that the bill was charged at 7 p.m. He wanted to then see my cell phone and see what time I had called in, which was around 10pm as noted above. He then wanted to know why we had waited so long to call. I told him I didn't think it was that long and I was very sorry if we had not been as responsive as they wanted. I told him since the office was closed, and from what I understood from my initial pre-trip communication with their office, the phone call was important but I had never been given the understanding that it was that time sensitive after hours.
I was apparently flustered by Officer Barnes intimidating demeanor, and had told him I had only thought it was an hour or two, when it had in reality been about 3 ½ hours. When I corrected my self and attempted to recall every detail for them, they accused me of changing my story and lying again, like they were sure I had obviously done in my answers regarding how many people were on my boat. Officer Holmes then declared again that I was lying and stated, "Only after my thorough interrogation did you reveal the true number of passengers on your boat!"
They both went on how I had changed my story of when I had first called the number on their door, how long I had actually been on shore before calling, etc, etc, etc. Officer Holmes took me to the front door of the office and insisted I read the sign on their door, which says to call the above noted 1-800 number "Immediately" upon arriving. He said, "See, you have to tie up to the dock and call IMMEDIATELY!" I couldn't help myself but had to ask, "If I was tied up to your dock, how would I ever be able to read this sign on your office door?" He gave me a "huff" and motioned me back inside the office. No where on the sign does it say to tie up to the dock and call from their kiosk after hours.
After a few more minutes of questions they told me to go wait outside. I asked if they meant for me to go back to the boat and they would call, and they said "No, just wait outside the office door!" It was windy and very cold outside, fresh snow and sleet had just fallen in the last hour, and so I waited, huddled on this small wooden bench against the outside wall of the Customs Office for more than an hour and a half.
While sitting outside in the weather, backed up against the wall to conserve heat against the bitter cold wind, I could hear them inside their office laughing and yucking it up. Officer Barnes commented that I had lied about when I checked in with the Harbor Master saying, "He said he checked in on Monday but he didn't check in until Tuesday." To which Officer Holmes replied, "I know, nothing in his story checks out!" Not only were these comments totally false, but they were obviously hell-bent on proving I was guilty of something and they were determined create the story to support their accusations.
In truth, I did check in on Monday, exactly as I had said, and the Harbor Master's written records so indicate, as well as the charge against my Visa card. My friend had checked in on Tuesday, exactly as I had stated, and they were confusing his check in time with mine, convinced they had caught me in another lie. Ironically this fact had absolutely nothing to do with US Customs jurisdiction, but seemed to make them feel more validated in their assumption that I was lying to hide something.
Officer Barnes was then looking over my passport and apparently was looking at the boarder stamps in the back pages; and I heard him ask Officer Holmes, "Where is Ben Gurion International Airport?" Officer Holmes then replied, "It is in Israel. Isn't that interesting!" My wife and other members of my family had taken a Holy Land Tour in March of 2008 with Garland Dennett, a registered tour guide, along with about 25 other American tourists.
The fact that I had been in Israel apparently was one more bit of evidence to support their assumption of guilt. This was further exacerbated when they also saw we had taken a guided tourist vacation to Peru six months ago as well. They then joked about me being a terrorist or something. To sit and listen to their inane dribble was more depressing than the cold. If they wanted me outside the office so they could have a confidential conversation, their intelligence was even more disappointing than expected.
After more than an hour had passed, I was freezing cold and needed to use the restroom. I knocked on their door and was made to feel like a school child as I asked their permission to go use the facilities. After nearly another 30 minutes, I was fighting to control the shivers and nearing the end of my patience. I again knocked on the door and I asked how much longer they anticipated detaining me.
Officer Holmes said, "Your friends can go, but this will take several more hours for you!" Then Officer Barnes stepped into the front office and said, "Well, actually we have made our decision and other than completing our paperwork, you are free to go." He then informed me that I was charged with failing to check in at their dock and was being fined $5,000.00. He then handed back all our passports and other documents they had seized the night before. He said their headquarters would be sending me the citation and fine in the mail.
When contrasting the Canadian experience at their Customs office, with my Friday Harbor experience as a citizen of the United States entering back into my own country, the contrast could not have been more stark. I was truly shocked to be charged with a crime for doing exactly what I was told to do by their office nearly two weeks earlier! I told them I was of course bothered about the fine, but truthfully the bigger issue for me was clearing my record and protecting my good name.
I told them I had not violated any crime or done anything to jeopardize America or the sanctity of its borders. Officer Barnes then said, "Sir, you now have a record! There is nothing further you can do about that and you will be contacted by mail!" In cold business-like language, they told me to get out, they were through with me. I asked them for their business cards and Officer Holmes said, "They don't give us cards!" I then asked them to write down their names and badge numbers for my records, which reluctantly they did.
I truly pray every American is not subjected to this level of border crossing harassment. I will never check in with the Friday Harbor Customs Office again, and it may be a very long time before I ever set foot in Friday Harbor, use their restaurants, hotels, movie theaters, buy their gas, or shop at their stores. All the businesses of Friday Harbor are just as much a victim of this type of harassment as I am. Truly they will be the ones who also bear the financial burden of this anti-tourist approach to those who would otherwise come and visit, but now never will.
I am now patiently waiting for the bureaucratic machine of the US Customs Office to send me their formal citation and the disposition of my $5,000 fine. I genuinely hope that Officer Holmes and Officer Barnes can sleep at night, knowing they have harassed and victimized another innocent American citizen. What an opportunity cost we pay for having our US Customs officers waste their time with the innocent, while the criminals never bother to call their 1-800 number in the first place, much less "tie up at their dock!" v
|
|
|
|
|
