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The Minuteman Project, which attracted international attention by putting armed civilians along the Arizona-Mexico border to deter illegal immigration, announced Wednesday that it was entering a new phase and would stop its patrol activities. The roughly 750 volunteers, organizers said, would remain in the border area through April under the direction of Civil Homeland Defense, a Tombstone, Ariz., group similar to the Minuteman Project. The project will focus on protesting businesses that employ illegal immigrants, pushing for immigration reform and organizing Minuteman branches nationwide. Leaders Jim Gilchrist and Chris Simcox are scheduled to speak before the Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus in Washington next week. "Mr. Gilchrist helped develop the Minuteman Project, and he is taking it to Washington," said Gray Deacon, a spokesman for the group. "But the Minutemen are not going anywhere. We are duty-bound to do what we promised, and we promised to stay through April. We have just as many stations, just as many volunteers, and none of us are laying down our lawn chairs and walking away." Deacon said the group had been instrumental in the arrests of 283 illegal immigrants. Gilchrist, a retired accountant from Aliso Viejo, Calif., said his goals had been accomplished sooner than expected. [yeehawwwrr!]

Latino activists decry civilian border patrols [more]