ARTHUR H. ROTSTEIN

Border Patrol arrests of illegal immigrants fell 16 percent during the first 11 months of the fiscal year in the Tucson sector, the busiest corridor along the Mexican border.
The drop continues a trend from last year - and may reflect the state of economic conditions in both the United States and Mexico as much as it does enhanced enforcement efforts, a spokesman says.
Through the end of August, agents in the 260-mile sector arrested just under 300,000 illegal immigrants.
That's 16 percent fewer than the nearly 359,000 caught during the first 11 months of fiscal 2007.
Meanwhile, apprehensions plummeted more than 78 percent in the Yuma sector during the same period - from 37,108 to 7,966. That comes after arrests in the 125-mile Yuma sector plunged almost 68 percent in fiscal 2007 from the preceding 12-month period.
Though fiscal 2008 ended Tuesday, Customs and Border Protection officials said figures for all 12 months of fiscal 2008 are unlikely to be released before mid-month.
Rob Daniels, a Tucson sector spokesman, and Yuma sector spokesman Ben Vik, attributed the dips to several reasons.
"There are a number of different elements for any change, including of course our right mix of manpower, technology and infrastructure," Daniels said.
National Guardsmen supplemented the Border Patrol until July.
The now-completed two-year mission deployed as many as 6,000 guardsmen along the entire southwestern border as the Border Patrol launched a hiring program to double the number of its agents.
The Guard's presence in a variety of roles allowed the Border Patrol "to be more of a deterrent," Daniels said. "The intent was to prevent the crossings, to prevent the deaths from occurring."
The number of illegal immigrants who died in Tucson sector deserts also dropped by 20 percent, from 193 to 154, in the first 11 months of fiscal 2008.
Added Border Patrol agents, fencing and other infrastructure such as powerful lighting, observation towers and improved roads all have helped reduce apprehensions by making it tougher to cross into Arizona, Daniels said.
But he added, "Obviously, the economy in both the United States and Mexico is always a factor."
With the economic downturn, fewer jobs have been available for illegal immigrants, particularly in fields such as construction, he said.
Employer sanctions enacted by the Arizona Legislature have dissuaded hiring of illegal immigrants, Daniels said.
"It's removing the draw, the attraction, and then our enhanced enforcement operations have tried to . . . break the smuggling cycle," he said.
Those include such programs in Tucson as Operation Arizona Denial, in which 70 persons arrested daily in designated high-trafficking areas are prosecuted in federal court and given jail time or formally deported.