Thread: AL-Foley man gets probation for hiring illegal immigrants

Foley man gets probation for hiring illegal immigrants
Gerald Jones also ordered to pay $24,000 fine
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
By BRENDAN KIRBY

A federal judge in Mobile sentenced a Baldwin County businessman Monday to five years' probation — three more than the prosecution's recommendation — for hiring illegal immigrants.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Sonja Bivins also ordered Gerald Jones, 56, to pay a $24,000 fine — $1,000 for each count.

The Foley man admitted in March that he hired illegal immigrants for his now-closed labor-finding company, Skyline Services.

The criminal charges represent a rare prosecution of a business owner for hiring illegal immigrants. In Mobile's federal court, according to records available online, it is the first time since at least 1993 that a business owner has been charged with hiring illegal aliens.

Hundreds of illegal immigrants liv ing in the Mobile area, meanwhile, have been deported.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Da ryl Atchison asked Bivins to impose a two-year probation term as recommended under the plea agreement.

"It's a misdemeanor offense," Atchison said. "Mr. Jones was cooperative from the day agents walked through the door."

But Bivins said two years was not long enough.

"Given the defendant's extensive criminal history, I'm going to place him on probation for five years," she said.

Judges generally sign off on the terms of plea agreements, but they are not bound by them.

"It was a surprise, but you never know," defense attorney Robert Galloway said. "It's up to the judge."

Jones, who now manages a restaurant in Foley, said the criminal charges and an impending divorce have made the past year difficult. But, he said, he is ready to move on.

Skyline Services, operating out of a pair of convenience stores in Foley and Gulf Shores, supplied laborers to lawn-care companies, construction contractors, cleaning services and other businesses along the coast.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents alleged that hundreds of those workers were in the country illegally, although Jones said the numbers reached that high only immediately after Hurricane Katrina.

One of Jones' employees, Roberto Pereida-Dias, pleaded guilty to making fake identification for workers and was deported to his native Brazil.

Two other men working for the company — including Jones' brother-in-law, Joel Pinho — pleaded guilty to illegally re-entering the United States after having been deported.

http://www.al.com/news/press-register/m ... xml&coll=3

I understood that aiding and abetting illegal immigration was a felony. If they guy was enriched by knowingly hiring illegals, particularly with stolen ID's, why was he only charged with a misdemeanor?