Well, that certainly didn’t take long, did it?

As we discussed yesterday, the migrant caravan arrived at the U.S. border near San Diego this weekend, with hundreds of migrants demanding access to immigration officials so they could file asylum claims. With the immigration centers already full, it’s going to take time for all of those claims to be processed, though eight women and children were initially taken into custody so their applications could be investigated. But while the spokesmen for the caravan were holding press conferences and talking about their lawful rights and need for legal access, others clearly were not interested in playing by the rules. Immigration officials arrested eleven of the caravan members who had crossed the border on their own. (CNN)

The Department of Justice has filed complaints against 11 individuals believed to be members of the Central American migrant caravan, accusing them of illegally entering the United States, a federal law enforcement official tells CNN… Two Salvadorans, six Hondurans, and three Guatemalans face charges, according to the official. Ten of the individuals face a misdemeanor charge for allegedly entering the US illegally. Another individual is alleged to have entered the US after having been previously deported, and faces a felony charge. The official says the probable cause statement alleges many of those charged were seen in an area known as Goat Canyon, about 4 miles to the west of the San Ysidro Port of Entry, on the US side of the border. Others were seen on the US side of the border about 2 miles west of San Ysidro in an area known as “W-8.”

Those are just the ones who jumped the border within the first 24 hours. Imagine how many more will be exploring the same option when they are forced to wait in line for their claims to be processed. After all the lectures we received about the “humanitarian” nature of the caravan and how racist it was to suspect they might be planning to do precisely this, don’t expect to see much wall-to-wall coverage of these border jumpers on most cable news outlets.

This incident also blows holes in the claims that we don’t need a stronger border wall because the less protected sections are too difficult to cross on foot. Officials noted in their complaint that many of those arrested had gone through an area known as Goat Canyon. Is that some daunting passage requiring massive strength, endurance and skills to survive the trip across the border? As it turns out, Goat Canyon is actually a tourist attraction for Southern California, featuring a popular hiking trail and the nation’s largest wooden railroad trestle.

If this abandoned railroad line is providing a direct route into the United States from Mexico and the Border Patrol already knows about it and has to monitor the area, don’t you suppose we might benefit from a bit more of a wall in that region? Our officers found eleven of the people who made it through using this route. How many more didn’t they catch?