Houston Mayor: Failed Immigration Policy Is Responsible For Teen’s Murder

Houston Mayor Annise Parker blames failed federal immigration policy for the shooting death Aug. 7 of 14-year-old Shatavia Anderson. The girl was walking home alone from a party around midnight, when she was allegedly confronted, then shot in the back, just 100 yards from her home.

Two suspects have been arrested in the case. The alleged gunman is Melvin Alvarado, 22, a Honduran national. He was twice convicted of drunk driving in Houston, served time in Harris County Jail, and was twice deported–in April 2008 and again in May 2009–only to return to Houston.

“We have to figure out a way to secure our borders,” said Mayor Parker, in an interview with Forbes. “The problem is not illegal immigration. The problem is not being able to figure out when we catch somebody whether they’re here illegally. The problem is that when someone has broken a U.S. law and they’re in the system, we ought to have secure borders so we can keep them out. That is a federal responsibility at which they have failed miserably.”...

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20,000 Illegals Detained in Harris County



HOUSTON - The Harris County Sheriff's Office is beginning to look a lot like the federal immigration office.

That's because each month more than a thousand illegal immigrants are identified and turned over the feds at the jail.

This is part of the 287G federal program. It's training provided for local law enforcement officers to spot illegals through a series of questions and interviewing techniques.

That's after they're arrested on other criminal charges.

Lt. Michael Lindsay oversees the program at Harris County.

He says, "there's no doubt it's helping to stop crimes."

Since the program began deputies have placed holds on illegals from Vietnam, Cameroon, Pakistan and of course Mexico.

Lt. Lindsay says the program has helped them collar some very violent offenders wanted all over the world...

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Houston Bus Companies Were Links In Illegal Immigrant Network

HOUSTON — Raids on 14 illegal bus companies here have shed light on a seedy underground system that transported illegal immigrants all over the country and that sometimes held them captive until their relatives paid exorbitant fares, federal law enforcement officials said Thursday.

Using minivans, the companies were carrying hundreds of illegal immigrants from Mexico to cities across the United States, taking back roads and traveling primarily at night to avoid the authorities, according to criminal complaints filed in Federal District Court. Twenty-two people were arrested earlier this week on charges of using their businesses to transport illegal immigrants...