When I was a reporter on immigration issues for Hoy-Los Angeles newspaper (Los Angeles Times in Spanish), I was nominated for an Immigration Fellowship at the University of Southern California (USC) amongst other twelve journalists from other Hispanic media outlets in the US.  

We traveled to Tucson, Arizona, and spent a week listening to experts on EEUU – Mexico border issues.  We also traveled to Altar, Sonora, to speak with migrants preparing to cross illegally into US territory.  

At the end of this fellowship, we had to present a news story about the immigration issues along the US/Mexico border. This is how the story of Leticia González arose, a Salvadoran mother who paid a human smuggler to bring her two daughters into the United States to be reunited with her in Los Angeles, California.  Many days passed, and she did not know anything about them.  All she was told by the smuggler that her children had crossed the border.  

I traveled to Tucson, Arizona, and requested an international border tour with an US Border Patrol Agent, a member of the Border Patrol Search, Trauma and Rescue Team (BORSTAR); the idea was to learn about their work and to try to figure out what had happened to Leticia children.  

During the ride-along, the agent received a call from a rancher who found a body. We went to the location and discovered the human skeletal remains that had female clothing garments attached to the rid cage and hip bone.  The body and personal belongings in the immediate area appeared to be of a female migrant.  

That day, we determined that there was much information needed to know where to initiate a search all along the US/Mexico international border.  After several months of searching, Leticia learned that the bodies of her children were found near McCallen, Texas.