The Ballad of Esequiel Herenandez

Tonight, PBS will air the documentary The Ballad of Esequiel Hernandez.  Hernandez was an 18-year-old resident of Radford, Texas killed in 1997 when U.S. Marines mistook him for a drug smuggler while he was out tending to his family's herd of goats.

The case illustrates the dangers inherent in blurring the line between military and domestic policing, a practice that's grown increasingly common over the last 30 years, particularly with respect to the drug war.  

As the PBS summary points out, the film takes on particular significance now that the Bush administration has ended a 10-year moratorium on military operations along the border.

Watch the trailer here.  Nick Gillespie commented on the Hernandez case for NPR back in 1998.

Thanks to David Boaz for the tip.