For reasons that are unclear (perhaps aggressive law enforcement, economic decline, or some combination), fewer people are becoming ensnared in the increasingly high-tech patrol efforts. Still, migrants continue to lose their lives as they attempt to cross into the land of opportunity while dodging authorities.

Rev. Robin Hoover of the Arizona-based group Humane Borders said that desperation and growing safety risk is jeopardizing more lives: “they're going around the fences, the technology and where the agents are... And the further you walk from a safe place, the more likely a broken ankle becomes a death sentence.”

The news comes on the heels of endorsements from several border activist groups of President Obama's move toward supposedly more humane, focused immigration and border policies. Some praise the administration for advocating a crackdown on violent criminals at the border rather than apprehending ordinary migrants.

At the same time, the Border Network for Human Rights cautions against rampant militarization in a policy report: “we need to stop treating the immigrant as the greatest threat, focusing instead on dangerous criminals, traffickers, and exploiters in border and immigrant communities.”

Every new death discovered in the desert reveals how far the government is from a border system that does less harm than good. Reallocating enforcement resources is just one piece of building a border policy that respects life.

Image: Pat Shannahan / The Arizona Republic