Thread: TX. Latino immigrants plan protest over federal immigration removals in Corsicana

Latino immigrants plan protest over federal immigration removals in Corsicana

DIANNE SOLÍS Follow @disolis Email dsolis@dallasnews.com

Published: July 27, 2015 12:01 pm

Sunday night, residents in Corsicana listen to speakers after federal immigration agents conducted three days of house-by-house searches for immigrants in the U.S. unlawfully. (Photo credit/Dallas Morning News)

CORSICANA—Fear and distrust spread among Latino immigrants in this factory town of about 24,000 after three days of searches by federal deportation officials working with local law enforcement.

Residents said they plan protests tonight at 6 p.m. during a council session at Corsicana City Hall.

“Do we want to become another Arizona?” said Patricia Hinojosa, a Mexican immigrant and a resident of Corsicana. Her reference was to the harsh measures Arizona took to fight back against illegal immigration. Some portions of the 2010 state law were struck down in federal courts.

The operation targeted those with criminal backgrounds but, by late Monday morning, officials from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement still did not provide detail on the number of people taken away or the convictions or charges they faced.

Unauthorized immigrants can be removed from the U.S. if they have convictions deemed significant, or three misdemeanors, other than minor traffic offenses, under federal immigration procedures outlined last November to prioritize deportations and use of resources. Recent arrivals who came unlawfully into the U.S. after Jan. 1, 2014 can also be apprehended,according to the November memo from Jeh Johnson, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

Residents said in a Sunday night meeting that many taken away in house-by-house searches had committed non-violent offenses and that ICE agents didn’t have search warrants issued by a judge. It also appeared some didn’t know to ask for them when early morning knocks began in a mostly Latino neighborhood on 13th Street in south Corsicana. One community member said at least one business was visited by ICE agents in this city about 55 miles south of Dallas.

Hinojosa told about 50 people gathered at a community meeting at a church that some had “cargos,” or charges, including those involving domestic violence. But others had traffic tickets, such as driving without a license. “If we don’t stop this now, when?” she asked.

Anger was directed at Navarro County Sheriff Elmer Tanner for assisting in the apprehensions. Many of those apprehended were taken to a jail in Cleburne in Johnson County.

“You need to have a voice,” said Jose Manuel Santoyo, a Southern Methodist University student who went to school in Corsicana and is now helping residents. “You need to speak to the sheriff to get solutions.”

http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2...orsicana.html/

http://www.alipac.us/f12/tx-ice-cond...county-321541/

Update at 3:10 p.m.

Federal immigration officials said Monday afternoon that 27 Mexican immigrants with criminal convictions were arrested in North Texas in a four-day operation that ended Sunday.The convictions included driving while intoxicated, assault with bodily injury on a family member, purchasing/furnishing alcohol to a minor, engaging in organized criminal activity, alien smuggling and theft.

The arrested immigrants were 25 men and 2 women. One woman was released after her arrest because she was the sole care-giver to a small child.

“Our dedicated ICE officers play a significant role in helping make our communities safer by arresting convicted criminal aliens and removing them from the United States,” said Simona Flores, director of removal operations for the Dallas region. “By focusing our resources on the most egregious offenders, we ensure the very best of our resources, while immediately improving public safety.”

Last fiscal year, ICE removed about 316,000 persons nationwide, they said in a news release.

Immigrants said they believed more than 100 were initially apprehended, including some immigrants with legal residency.

Those with legal immigration status can be deported, or removed, if convicted of certain crimes, an ICE official said.

http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2...orsicana.html/

*******************ONLY 27 ARRESTED*******************

NEXT TIME --- TRY HARDER

ICE arrests 27 convicted criminal aliens in North Texas during 4-day operation

(Photo: ICE)

DALLAS (ICE)— Twenty-seven convicted criminal aliens were arrested in North Texas during a four-day initiative that ended Sunday which was conducted by local officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).

This enforcement action, which began July 23, is the latest effort by ICE to prioritize the arrest and removal of convicted criminal aliens. Twenty-six arrests were made in Corsicana; one arrest was made in Dallas.

All 27 individuals arrested have been convicted of crimes in the United States and fall within ICE’s enforcement priorities.

Overall, their convictions include: driving while intoxicated, assault with bodily injury on a family member, purchasing/furnishing alcohol to a minor, engaging in organized criminal activity, alien smuggling and theft.

Of the 27 arrested, two fall into ICE’s Priority 1 category, which generally includes national security issues, felony or aggravated felony convictions. Twenty four of those arrested during this operation were Priority 2 arrests, generally including those with three or more misdemeanor convictions (not including traffic convictions), such as sexual abuse or sexual exploitation, burglary, possession or use of a firearm, and possessing illegal drugs.

ICE officers arrested 25 men and two women; one woman was released on her own recognizance shortly after her arrest when it was discovered she was a sole care-giver to a small child. All those arrested were from Mexico. All those arrested will be held locally in ICE custody as they are processed for removal or await hearings before a federal immigration judge
“Our dedicated ICE officers play a significant role in helping make our communities safer by arresting convicted criminal aliens and removing them from the United States," said Simona L. Flores, field officer director for ERO Dallas. "By focusing our resources on the most egregious offenders, we ensure the very best use of our resources, while immediately improving public safety.”

“During this operation, there were a number of unfounded rumors spread via social media,” said Flores. “I want to emphasize that all participating ICE officers acted professionally and compassionately, while also effectively performing their duties. Our community outreach officer also worked closely with families that were impacted by these arrests.”

“All law enforcement officers face potentially life-threatening situations when performing their duties,” said Flores. “This is especially true of our ICE officers when they target convicted criminals who are in the country illegally. The timing, strategies, and methods they employ are all aimed at ensuring the safety of everyone present.”

In fiscal year 2014, ICE conducted 315,943 removals nationwide. Eighty-five percent of individuals removed from the interior of the United States had previously been convicted of a criminal offense. Ninety-eight percent of all ICE FY 2014 removals, or 309,477, clearly met one or more of ICE’s stated civil immigration enforcement priorities. The Dallas area of responsibility removed 15,030 aliens in FY 2014; 12,731 had criminal convictions.

http://www.cbs19.tv/story/29643256/i...-day-operation

Deportation arrests in Corsicana bring out protesters

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Photos by Rose Baca/Staff Photographer
SMU student Jose Manuel Santoyo led a group of protesters who gathered at the Corsicana Government Center before a City Council meeting on Monday. Federal officials said that 27 Mexican immigrants were arrested during an initiative that ended Sunday.


By DIANNE SOLÍS dsolis@dallasnews.com
Staff Writer
Published: 27 July 2015 11:02 PM
Updated: 27 July 2015 11:02 PM

CORSICANA — Mexican immigrants, their U.S. citizen children and spouses, and other supporters filled City Hall in a rare protest Monday night over the deportation arrests of people who federal immigration officials say have criminal records.

Federal officials said that 27 Mexican immigrants were arrested during a four-day initiative that ended Sunday and that two of them fell into the Homeland Security Department’s top removal priority.

One person had two felony convictions for driving while intoxicated and another had a felony identification fraud, a federal spokesman said.

But residents in this town of about 24,000 said many other people were initially questioned and even more were frightened by the potential loss of their family members.

“Why do you treat Mexicans as less?” said a shaken 15-year-old Rubí Ibarra, a U.S. citizen whose father and uncle were taken away.

“We are not bad people,” she said in the City Council chamber, which was packed with about 150 people. Outside in the lobby, about a hundred more stood listening as they watched the proceedings through large windows.

Ivette Swanson took the microphone, with her 6- and 4-year-old daughters beside her. The U.S. citizen said her 28-year-old husband, a Mexican who is in the U.S. illegally, was taken away Thursday morning.

She said she was trying to teach her children to trust the police. “But it is very hard when you do something like this,” she said.

Swanson’s husband, Gustavo Garcia, has been in the U.S. since he was a child.

He has two felony convictions for driving while intoxicated, but she said such indiscretions are common for “young, wild American boys.” Mexican immigrants shouldn’t face the harsh consequences of being deported to a country they no longer know, she said.

The uproar in Corsicana comes as immigrants and their supporters argue that cooperation between local authorities and federal immigration officers has sown distrust.

As the presidential election nears, others such as Republican candidate Donald Trump have hammered immigrants, particularly Mexicans, accusing them of crimes.

Although nearly a third of the population of rural, working-class Corsicana is of Latino ancestry, its City Council includes no Hispanics.

Mayor Chuck McClanahan said he couldn’t respond to the residents who spoke during the public comment portion of the council’s session Monday night because the issue of the deportation arrests hadn’t been placed on the agenda, as required by Texas law.

The city attorney, Kerri Anderson Donica, said the city did not ask for the immigration operation.

Anger largely centered on Navarro County Sheriff Elmer Tanner, whose deputies cooperated with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.

But on the Navarro County Sheriff’s Department’s Facebook page, Tanner tried to distance himself from the chaotic arrests: “I did not contact ICE to request this operation and this operation was not due to the recent cock fight arrests in Navarro County.”

“I do not take the position or the trust of our citizens lightly and I never will,” he added. “Upon request, we will assist any law enforcement agency that is in our county to legally enforce the law.”

In a brief interview, Tanner confirmed he had posted on Twitter: “I can confirm that ICE has left #Navarro County #ICEoutofCorsicana.”

Some immigrants concluded the sheriff had taken their side by using “#ICEoutofCorsicana.”

Among those affected was Hernan Martinez, a 21-year-old U.S. citizen whose father was arrested as he was leaving for work.

“All I want are rights for all people,” Martinez said. “Nobody should be separated from their family.”

In the lobby, 38-year Martina Pozos looked glum as she faced a future without her husband.

He was taken after agents began knocking on their door about 6 a.m. Thursday.

“They said they were looking for a fugitive,” she said. “We said, ‘There’s no fugitive here.’ We were surprised. They said, ‘Can we enter?’”

The couple allowed officers into their home because “we had no fight with them,” Pozos said.

Pozos said the officers wanted to arrest her, though she insisted she’d done nothing wrong. When agents asked her whether she was in the U.S. illegally, she admitted she was.

But her husband was taken away instead. Pozos said she believes she was spared because she’s the mother of five children. She said she has contacted an attorney who told her fighting the case would cost $5,000 to $8,000.

Isidro Guido said his 27-year-old sister was also taken, leaving him to care for her 5-year-old daughter, who is a U.S. citizen.

On Sunday, the video of the crying girl was posted on the Facebook page of Jose Manuel Santoyo, a Southern Methodist University student and former Corsicana resident. By Monday night, the video had been viewed more than 22,000 times.

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