Thread: Casa Grande not a likely 'sanctuary'won't turn city into hid

Casa Grande not a likely 'sanctuary'
Maricopa sheriff's illegal-immigrant policy won't turn city into hideout, police official says



By HAROLD KITCHING, Staff Writer April 14, 2008


"I personally don't foresee ... a horde of illegal aliens coming to Pinal County to avoid Maricopa County. That's where the work, more of it, is. That's how they make their livelihood."

- Cmdr. Kent Horn, Casa Grande Police Department's Criminal Investigations Division
There's little danger that Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's patrols rounding up illegal immigrants will force many of them to Casa Grande, the Police Advisory Board was told.


The question was raised during Thursday night's meeting by Michael Iovino, a Casa Grande resident who said the nightly television footage made him wonder, "Is that going to end up sending the people down here into this area because they're afraid of being rounded up in Maricopa County? I'm talking about criminal illegal aliens. Is that going to end up increasing the criminal element in Casa Grande? And if so, are we a sanctuary city?

"I can just see the criminal element moving out of that area and they're going to go somewhere and what if it is Casa Grande. Are they (local police) checking immigration status as well for criminal elements, and is that a concern?"

Cmdr. Kent Horn, who heads the Police Department's Criminal Investigations Division, replied, "As far as the risk goes of making a politically incorrect political statement, I believe what Sheriff Joe Arpaio is doing is something that's on his agenda. And when you have basically two million people in the metropolitan area, even given the statistics that he states, it's a minute fraction of what he's doing.

"I personally don't foresee us becoming a sanctuary city or a horde of illegal aliens coming to Pinal County to avoid Maricopa County. That's where the work, more of it, is. That's how they make their livelihood."

Board member Jim Rhodes told Iovino that the definition of sanctuary city "is one where the city council has made an official proclamation that they will not get involved in checking (immigration status). That's a sanctuary city. That would be like in San Francisco and some others that are well known."

The Casa Grande City Council has never publicly discussed being a sanctuary city.

Board member John Diaz, a Border Patrol agent, said the local Border Patrol station "hasn't seen an increase of criminal activity in Casa Grande with the illegals, per se, since Sheriff Arpaio has started the raids up there."

Iovino said, "If it's a problem there, it's a problem here as well," then asked how many arrests in Casa Grande are of illegal immigrants and if they are reported to federal immigration officials."

That's a two-fold question, Horn responded, adding, "Does the local Police Department actively check residency status? The answer to that is no. However, if a person is involved in a crime or comes to our attention ..., whether they're a resident or whether they're a nonresident, we address that. Then we turn to (Immigration and Customs Enforcement). for their support in the legality of the status.

"Frankly, sir, you heard earlier tonight us reference manpower and things like that. We don't have the resources to take on yet another chore, which is actually the bailiwick of the federal government by statute."

The main question, board Chairman Donna McBride said, is whether Horn believes the Police Department is equipped to handle an influx, should it ever happen.

"I do, Donna, because beyond the Casa Grande Police Department we have resources in the Pinal County Sheriff's Office, the state task forces, numerous other things, as well as (ICE) to step in and to address that should it become an obvious influx or a problem."

The other major question is whether illegal immigrants would want to congregate in Casa Grande.

McBride said that when she needed some construction work done, some contractors said "our workers will not come to Casa Grande to work because of the Border Patrol."

Diaz said he has been at the Border Patrol station in Casa Grande since 1996 and during that time has seen that most of the illegal immigrants are merely passing through the area.

"So, really, as far as this being a sanctuary for a bunch of criminal illegal aliens, there hasn't been an increase."

Board member Rhodes, referring to Horn's statement about an Arpaio agenda, told Iovino, "Don't get what you see on a press release or on a news sound bite confused with the scope of the problem. The fact that the press uses something in order to fill their time is different than what the real problem is day by day by day by day."
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?news ... 8561&rfi=6

McBride said that when she needed some construction work done, some contractors said "our workers will not come to Casa Grande to work because of the Border Patrol."

Won't work in Casa Grande because of the Border Patrol!

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