Border Patrol struggles to keep new hires

'I've just got to sit my time on the line'
Darin Bowdin of Sacramento, who joined the station in October 2006, wants to be promoted to a special unit — like all-terrain vehicles, horseback, boat patrol or SWAT-style teams — but those jobs are off-limits until he finishes two years.

For now, the 27-year-old says: "I've just got to sit my time on the line watching the fence."

Kate Griffith applied at the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration but lacked experience, so she joined the Border Patrol in January 2007 after hearing a radio ad.

"I thought it would be an opportunity to get in federal law enforcement," said Griffith, who likes her job but would eventually consider returning home to York, Pa.

Recruiters are going to extraordinary lengths to find applicants. New television ads show agents jumping out of a helicopter, climbing over boulders and sitting on galloping horses.

In September alone, the agency will hold job fairs from Honolulu to Charleston, S.C. It is sponsoring NASCAR and professional bull riding contests. Specialized teams focus on hiring women and African-Americans.

The Imperial Beach station has grown to 400 agents from 300 since October, with more than 40 percent having less than 2 1/2 years at the agency. Of the 100 newest hires, 20 have left, most before finishing training.

Some are unprepared even after graduating from the academy, said Erich Haas, who trains new hires, known as interns.

"When they return from the academy, the first thing I tell them is that it's going to be tough, lots of long hours," Haas said. "I've seen some interns realize after the first couple days that this is a different animal."

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