150 Illegal Immigrants Found During Arrests
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- It's been about two months since Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry ordered police officers and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to fingerprint everyone who is arrested and check their immigration status.
According to ICE officials, already 150 illegal immigrants have been arrested.
"The focus of this program is to make our streets safer," said Albuquerque Public Safety Director Darren White. "These are 150 people who were accused of breaking the law and who are in this country illegally."
White said none of these illegal immigrants are innocent and that they've all been arrested for serious offenses.
"When you look at some of the charges, from DWI to some of these violent felonies, these are not people you want on our streets," said White...
[Full Article]
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Editorial: Illegal immigration program has merit
Yet another effort to address illegal immigration is being surrounded by controversy.
The federal government is rapidly expanding a program to identify illegal immigrants using fingerprints from arrests, drawing opposition from authorities and advocates who argue the initiative amounts to an excessive dragnet, according to The Associated Press.
The program, called Secure Communities, has received less attention than Arizona's new immigration law, but it may end up having a bigger impact because of its potential to round up and deport so many illegal immigrants nationwide.
Under the program, the fingerprints of everyone who is booked into jail for any crime are run against FBI criminal history records and Department of Homeland Security immigration records to determine who is in the country illegally and whether they've been arrested previously. Most jurisdictions are not included in the program, but Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been expanding the initiative.
Since 2007, 467 jurisdictions in 26 states have joined. ICE has said it plans to have every jail in the country by 2013...
[Full Article]
Yet another effort to address illegal immigration is being surrounded by controversy.
The federal government is rapidly expanding a program to identify illegal immigrants using fingerprints from arrests, drawing opposition from authorities and advocates who argue the initiative amounts to an excessive dragnet, according to The Associated Press.
The program, called Secure Communities, has received less attention than Arizona's new immigration law, but it may end up having a bigger impact because of its potential to round up and deport so many illegal immigrants nationwide.
Under the program, the fingerprints of everyone who is booked into jail for any crime are run against FBI criminal history records and Department of Homeland Security immigration records to determine who is in the country illegally and whether they've been arrested previously. Most jurisdictions are not included in the program, but Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been expanding the initiative.
Since 2007, 467 jurisdictions in 26 states have joined. ICE has said it plans to have every jail in the country by 2013...
[Full Article]
Utah immigration bill coming next week, despite call for moratorium, Sandstrom says
SALT LAKE CITY — His get-tough bill to crack down on illegal immigrants in Utah will be ready this week, Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, R-Orem, told an immigration forum Saturday — right after a long-time Hispanic activist urged a moratorium on new state immigration laws.
The goal of the forum, the first of several planned by the Utah Hispanic Latino Coalition, was to civilly find solutions to illegal immigration. The result: Well … it was civil, at least.
"State solutions muddy the waters, and they bring out the rhetoric and the nastiness," suggested Archie Archuleta, head of the Utah Coalition of La Raza, hoping for a moratorium.
But Sandstrom's bill is still on track.
"We're just getting the language finished up," he said, adding that the bill "will stand up in court."...
[Full Article]
SALT LAKE CITY — His get-tough bill to crack down on illegal immigrants in Utah will be ready this week, Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, R-Orem, told an immigration forum Saturday — right after a long-time Hispanic activist urged a moratorium on new state immigration laws.
The goal of the forum, the first of several planned by the Utah Hispanic Latino Coalition, was to civilly find solutions to illegal immigration. The result: Well … it was civil, at least.
"State solutions muddy the waters, and they bring out the rhetoric and the nastiness," suggested Archie Archuleta, head of the Utah Coalition of La Raza, hoping for a moratorium.
But Sandstrom's bill is still on track.
"We're just getting the language finished up," he said, adding that the bill "will stand up in court."...
[Full Article]
Boehner Says Study Ending Birthright Citizenship
(NewsCore) - House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) Sunday said he is open to talks on changing the U.S. Constitution -- or at least the way it is interpreted -- so that U.S.-born children of illegal immigrants are not automatically U.S. citizens.
"I think it's worth considering," Boehner said on NBC's "Meet The Press" program.
The top House Republican joined Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) in calling for further study of the idea -- something that has been endorsed by prominent Republicans over the past few weeks. Though the call is already running into stiff opposition and faces extremely long odds of ever succeeding, some lawmakers say it would be a way to minimize the incentive for illegal immigration.
"There is a problem. To provide an incentive for illegal immigrants to come here so that their children can be U.S. citizens does, in fact, draw more people to our country," Boehner said. "I do think that it's time for us to secure our borders and enforce the law and allow this conversation about the 14th Amendment to continue."...
[Full Article]
(NewsCore) - House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) Sunday said he is open to talks on changing the U.S. Constitution -- or at least the way it is interpreted -- so that U.S.-born children of illegal immigrants are not automatically U.S. citizens.
"I think it's worth considering," Boehner said on NBC's "Meet The Press" program.
The top House Republican joined Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) in calling for further study of the idea -- something that has been endorsed by prominent Republicans over the past few weeks. Though the call is already running into stiff opposition and faces extremely long odds of ever succeeding, some lawmakers say it would be a way to minimize the incentive for illegal immigration.
"There is a problem. To provide an incentive for illegal immigrants to come here so that their children can be U.S. citizens does, in fact, draw more people to our country," Boehner said. "I do think that it's time for us to secure our borders and enforce the law and allow this conversation about the 14th Amendment to continue."...
[Full Article]
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Ohio will do what it can until federal government tackles immigration reform (Ohio - August 6, 2010)
Across the nation, a fierce debate is raging over illegal immigration, fueled by the recent passage of a law in Arizona which says that if a person is stopped by the police for committing an offense, a law enforcement officer can ask for proof of citizenship if they have reason to believe the person is in the country illegally.
The controversy over this proposal has led to clashes between activists and police in the southwest, sparked heated rhetoric among public officials and other interest groups and incited calls by some for a boycott against travel to Arizona.
This past week, hours before Arizona's new immigration rules were scheduled to officially become law, a U.S. District Court judge blocked a number of key provisions in the bill from taking effect. It is anticipated that the legal battle will not end there, however, and the case could eventually end up before the Supreme Court to decide.
Federal officials maintain it is the federal government's role to govern immigration, not the states. Supporters of Arizona's statute, on the other hand, say these new rules do not subvert federal law, but support it.
Most Americans, including myself, support legal immigration but are concerned about the flood of illegal aliens entering the country on our southern border and its impact on the stability of taxpayer resources and our national security...
[Full Article]
Across the nation, a fierce debate is raging over illegal immigration, fueled by the recent passage of a law in Arizona which says that if a person is stopped by the police for committing an offense, a law enforcement officer can ask for proof of citizenship if they have reason to believe the person is in the country illegally.
The controversy over this proposal has led to clashes between activists and police in the southwest, sparked heated rhetoric among public officials and other interest groups and incited calls by some for a boycott against travel to Arizona.
This past week, hours before Arizona's new immigration rules were scheduled to officially become law, a U.S. District Court judge blocked a number of key provisions in the bill from taking effect. It is anticipated that the legal battle will not end there, however, and the case could eventually end up before the Supreme Court to decide.
Federal officials maintain it is the federal government's role to govern immigration, not the states. Supporters of Arizona's statute, on the other hand, say these new rules do not subvert federal law, but support it.
Most Americans, including myself, support legal immigration but are concerned about the flood of illegal aliens entering the country on our southern border and its impact on the stability of taxpayer resources and our national security...
[Full Article]
Arrest of third suspect in which illegal aliens repeatedly raped 6-year-old (w/video of arrest)
[Examiner.com]
Police in Williamsburg, Va., have arrested a juvenile, whose name is being withheld due to his age for repeatedly raping a 6-year-old girl. His arrest comes after two others, Tito Guirao-Aguilar, 39, and Samuel Eli Jacobo-Guirao, 20, were apprehended for victimizing the girl.
Guirao-Aguilar has been charged with three counts of aggravated sexual battery of a person under the age of 13, and Jacobo-Guirao is charged with one count of rape of a person under the age of 13 and two counts of aggravated sexual battery of a person under 13.
Both men are being held in the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail without bond. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has also placed a hold on them.
The most popular tourist destination in the state, Williamsburg has a growing crime problem attributable to its illegal alien population, who are largely employed by the hotel and restaurant industry.
On June 10, Williamsburg police arrested illegal alien Raul Vasquez-Garcia, 33, in front of the same apartment complex where he allegedly shot a man, a week earlier.
On the night of June 4, police arrived at the Village of Woodshire apartments on Merrimac Trail, they found a man suffering from two gunshot wounds. According to police, the man and Vasquez-Garcia had been arguing over a woman.
The victim was taken to a local hospital, where he recovered from his wounds and has since been released.
Vasquez-Garcia is charged with attempted murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and assault.
[Examiner.com]
Guirao-Aguilar has been charged with three counts of aggravated sexual battery of a person under the age of 13, and Jacobo-Guirao is charged with one count of rape of a person under the age of 13 and two counts of aggravated sexual battery of a person under 13.
Both men are being held in the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail without bond. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has also placed a hold on them.
The most popular tourist destination in the state, Williamsburg has a growing crime problem attributable to its illegal alien population, who are largely employed by the hotel and restaurant industry.
On June 10, Williamsburg police arrested illegal alien Raul Vasquez-Garcia, 33, in front of the same apartment complex where he allegedly shot a man, a week earlier.
On the night of June 4, police arrived at the Village of Woodshire apartments on Merrimac Trail, they found a man suffering from two gunshot wounds. According to police, the man and Vasquez-Garcia had been arguing over a woman.
The victim was taken to a local hospital, where he recovered from his wounds and has since been released.
Vasquez-Garcia is charged with attempted murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and assault.
ACLU: Ignore Cuccinelli on immigration inquiries
Richmond, Va. --
Richmond, Va. --
The ACLU of Virginia yesterday urged law enforcement agencies to ignore Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli's opinion on their power to inquire about immigration status, while opponents of illegal immigration pushed for more severe action.
Del. Robert G. Marshall, R-Prince William, who sought the opinion that Cuccinelli issued last Friday, sent a letter yesterday to all Virginia sheriff's offices to encourage them "to do all that you can" using the powers described in the opinion to root out gangs...
[Full Article]
Documents reveal potential widespread fraud at Department of Labor
[Full Article]
“Independence Investigates” has obtained internal emails from the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) showing that a software control intended to prevent the payment of unemployment insurance to unqualified citizens as well as to illegal aliens was shut off in early 2009.
The emails dictate that former CDLE unemployment insurance director Mike Cullen demanded “Work Order 51662” be given top priority within the department. Completion of the work order would mean various questions asked of someone filing for unemployment regarding citizenship would effectively be ignored by a computer system.
The documents also show that several individuals within the department immediately raised the issue that the work order might be circumventing the law, specifically House Bill 06-1023. HB 1023 was passed in a special session of the legislature in 2006, and mandated that certain government benefits, such as unemployment insurance, be denied to illegal aliens...
[Full Article]
Mixed family welfare benefits controlled by illegal alien parents
According to data release by Utah’s Workforce Services, 10% of Utah families receiving public assistance have a blend of citizens and undocumented immigrants relying on public benefits to survive.
This calls into serious question the often repeated assertion that illegal aliens do not receive taxpayer funded benefits.
While it may be technically correct to say that illegal aliens do not qualify directly for taxpayer funded, welfare benefits, the Workforce Services figures show that in reality illegal aliens are directly benefiting from taxpayer funded welfare programs through their American born children.
Illegal aliens clearly rely on their children's taxpayer funded benefits to help make ends meet...
[Full Article]
According to data release by Utah’s Workforce Services, 10% of Utah families receiving public assistance have a blend of citizens and undocumented immigrants relying on public benefits to survive.
This calls into serious question the often repeated assertion that illegal aliens do not receive taxpayer funded benefits.
While it may be technically correct to say that illegal aliens do not qualify directly for taxpayer funded, welfare benefits, the Workforce Services figures show that in reality illegal aliens are directly benefiting from taxpayer funded welfare programs through their American born children.
Illegal aliens clearly rely on their children's taxpayer funded benefits to help make ends meet...
[Full Article]
10 pct. of households receiving aid are mixed-immigration status
SALT LAKE CITY — Ten percent of the Utah households that receive food stamps, Medicaid or government welfare are a blend of illegal immigrants and U.S. citizens, according to new data released by the state.
Illegal immigrants cannot receive such benefits directly, except for some emergency health care. But any of their children born in the United States become automatic U.S. citizens and may receive benefits.
Department of Workforce Services data requested by the Deseret News shows that 23,837 such mixed-status households received some benefits between June 2009 and May of this year.
That is 10 percent of the 238,521 total Utah households that received such help. DWS collects data from illegal immigrants because the income of all household members affects eligibility of citizens for benefits and the amounts they may receive...
[Full Article]
SALT LAKE CITY — Ten percent of the Utah households that receive food stamps, Medicaid or government welfare are a blend of illegal immigrants and U.S. citizens, according to new data released by the state.
Illegal immigrants cannot receive such benefits directly, except for some emergency health care. But any of their children born in the United States become automatic U.S. citizens and may receive benefits.
Department of Workforce Services data requested by the Deseret News shows that 23,837 such mixed-status households received some benefits between June 2009 and May of this year.
That is 10 percent of the 238,521 total Utah households that received such help. DWS collects data from illegal immigrants because the income of all household members affects eligibility of citizens for benefits and the amounts they may receive...
[Full Article]
First Person: Immigration Rally Ends with Bloodied Nose, Lessons Learned
When I left my San Diego house early Thursday morning to attend the immigration demonstrations in Phoenix, my husband told me, "I really wish you wouldn't go. It is not going to be a good protest because it is so controversial."
While I was driving, the radio stations talked about peaceful demonstrations both sides of the debate planned to stage. But for me, Thursday's rallies ended with a punch to my face, a bloody nose and some attention from Phoenix EMTs...
[Full Article]
When I left my San Diego house early Thursday morning to attend the immigration demonstrations in Phoenix, my husband told me, "I really wish you wouldn't go. It is not going to be a good protest because it is so controversial."
While I was driving, the radio stations talked about peaceful demonstrations both sides of the debate planned to stage. But for me, Thursday's rallies ended with a punch to my face, a bloody nose and some attention from Phoenix EMTs...
[Full Article]
Smoking Gun Amnesty Memo Discovered
According to an internal U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services memo going the rounds of Capitol Hill and obtained by National Review, the agency is considering ways in which it could enact “meaningful immigration reform absent legislative action” — that is, without the consent of the American people through a vote in Congress.
“This memorandum offers administrative relief options to . . . reduce the threat of removal for certain individuals present in the United States without authorization,” it reads.
Also: “In the absence of Comprehensive Immigration Reform, USCIS can extend benefits and/or protections to many individuals and groups by issuing new guidance and regulations, exercising discretion with regard to parole-in-place, deferred action and the issuance of Notices to Appear (NTA), and adopting significant process improvements.”...
[Full Article]
According to an internal U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services memo going the rounds of Capitol Hill and obtained by National Review, the agency is considering ways in which it could enact “meaningful immigration reform absent legislative action” — that is, without the consent of the American people through a vote in Congress.
“This memorandum offers administrative relief options to . . . reduce the threat of removal for certain individuals present in the United States without authorization,” it reads.
Also: “In the absence of Comprehensive Immigration Reform, USCIS can extend benefits and/or protections to many individuals and groups by issuing new guidance and regulations, exercising discretion with regard to parole-in-place, deferred action and the issuance of Notices to Appear (NTA), and adopting significant process improvements.”...
[Full Article]
Ohio considering illegal immigration legislation (Ohio - August 2, 2010)
Across the nation a fierce debate is raging over illegal immigration, fueled by the recent passage of a law in Arizona, which says that if a person is stopped by the police for committing an offense, a law enforcement officer can ask for proof of citizenship if they have reason to believe that the person is in the country illegally.
The controversy over this proposal has led to clashes between activists and police in the southwest, sparked heated rhetoric among public officials and other interest groups and incited calls by some for a boycott against travel to Arizona.
This past week, hours before Arizona's new immigration rules were scheduled to officially become law, a U.S. District Court judge blocked a number of key provisions in the bill from taking effect. It is anticipated that the legal battle will not end there, however, and the case could eventually end up before the Supreme Court to decide.
Federal officials maintain that it is the federal government's role to govern immigration, not the states.
Supporters of Arizona's statute, on the other hand, say these new rules do not subvert federal law, but support it...
[Full Article]
Across the nation a fierce debate is raging over illegal immigration, fueled by the recent passage of a law in Arizona, which says that if a person is stopped by the police for committing an offense, a law enforcement officer can ask for proof of citizenship if they have reason to believe that the person is in the country illegally.
The controversy over this proposal has led to clashes between activists and police in the southwest, sparked heated rhetoric among public officials and other interest groups and incited calls by some for a boycott against travel to Arizona.
This past week, hours before Arizona's new immigration rules were scheduled to officially become law, a U.S. District Court judge blocked a number of key provisions in the bill from taking effect. It is anticipated that the legal battle will not end there, however, and the case could eventually end up before the Supreme Court to decide.
Federal officials maintain that it is the federal government's role to govern immigration, not the states.
Supporters of Arizona's statute, on the other hand, say these new rules do not subvert federal law, but support it...
[Full Article]
Harry Smith to Anti-SB1070 Advocate: Should U.S. Stem Flow of Illegal Immigrants?
Harry Smith on Sunday actually asked an anti-Arizona SB-1070 advocate whether or not the United States government should stem the flow of illegal immigrants into America.
Subbing for Bob Schieffer on CBS's "Face the Nation," Smith invited on Thomas Saenz, the head of the Mexican American Legal Defense & Education Fund, a pro-illegal immigrant group.
Early in the segment, Smith asked his guest, "Do you feel like the federal government is doing enough to stem the flow of illegal immigrants and -- or should it?...
[Full Article]
