Chris Simcox

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Chris Simcox

Chris Simcox is the cofounder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps and the project's main spokesperson. He was formerly a kindergarten teacher at the Wildwood School in Los Angeles, where he taught for thirteen years. ^[1]

In October 2002, Simcox issued a public call to arms, inviting readers of his newspaper, the Tombstone Tumbleweed, to join a "Citizens Border Patrol Militia" whose function, Simcox said, would be to "shame the government into doing its job" of controlling the United States' border with Mexico.

He founded Civil Homeland Defense, a group which patrolled the border, and within the next two and a half years sought to assist the United States Border Patrol by detaining thousands of illegal aliens.

In January 2003, Simcox was fined and his handgun confiscated after being questioned by National Park Rangers in Coronado National Memorial Park about the pistol he was carrying. ^[2]

Simcox's practice of reporting immigrants attempting to enter the country illegally has been controversial, and questions concerning its legality have been raised. Simcox's opponents claim that it is illegal for a normal citizen who is in no way affiliated with law enforcement to detain people in the United States. Simcox claims that these arrests are justified under a "citizen's arrest" policy.^{[citation needed]}

In December 2004, Simcox teamed up with James Gilchrist to organize the Minuteman Project, which brought nationwide attention to the southern border. While some have accused the Minuteman members of being vigilantes, supporters claim that there has never been a case of a member of The Minuteman Project physically harming anyone. This however has been disputed in recent press accounts that claim the project has killed up to 35 illegal aliens, although no proof of this accusation has been presented.^{[citation needed]}

Simcox was interviewed for the 2005 independent documentary Wetback: The Undocumented Documentary.

On April 21, 2006, Simcox issued an ultimatum to President George W. Bush to either send National Guard troops to guard the border or the "Minutemen" would begin construction of a wall along the border, built on private property.

Simcox has stated he does not receive a salary from Minutemen, and earns income via honorariums and fees received speaking engagements. He claims to have sold his life story for a movie that will soon go into production. ^[3]

1 Troubled Past

[edit] Troubled Past

Accusation of Child Molestation: The accusations leveled at Simcox in the summer of 1998, when his 14-year-old daughter from his first marriage -- prior to his union with Dunbar -- came to live with him in Los Angeles.

In separate interviews with the Intelligence Report, two of Simcox's former colleagues at Wildwood and his first ex-wife gave the same account. They said that Simcox helped his daughter get a job babysitting for a Wildwood School employee and that one night, Simcox's daughter showed up unexpectedly at her employer's house, visibly upset, alleging that her father had just attempted to sexually molest her.

"He tried to molest our daughter when he was intoxicated," said Deborah Crews, Simcox's first ex-wife and the girl's mother. "When she ran out, he tried to say he was just giving her a leg massage and she got the wrong idea."

Contacted by the Report, Simcox refused to answer four direct questions about the molestation allegations. "I would never answer those questions to you. You can't ask those questions," he said. "You're on a witch hunt and you're trying to discredit our movement, which is to secure the borders. ... My personal life has nothing to do with anything that goes on here." ^[4]

[edit] Previous Conviction on Two Misdemeanor Counts

According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) in its online published report, this former elementary school teacher, Chris Simcox, was previously convicted on two misdemeanor counts of carrying a loaded firearm onto Coronado National Park. [1]