Thread: Costa Mesa police will enforce immigration law

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/ho ... 877169.php

Wednesday, December 7, 2005

Costa Mesa police will enforce immigration law
Panel OKs a scaled-back plan that would only allow illegal immigrants to be reported by certain jail personnel and investigators.

By JEFF OVERLEY
The Orange County Register

COSTA MESA – The City Council early today approved training city police to enforce federal immigration law. The plan was scaled back from an original proposal that could have allowed patrol officers to detain illegal immigrants first stopped for minor offenses such as jaywalking or soliciting day labor.

Instead, the council agreed to piggyback on a plan currently being pushed by the Orange County Sheriff's Department. That proposal would only allow illegal immigrants to be reported by certain jail personnel and investigators.

The 3-2 vote, which came shortly after 1 a.m., followed several hours of comments from 45 speakers, most of whom opposed the idea.

Way to Go Costa Mesa!! We are proud of you, taking the bull by the horns and protecting your citizens.

Outstanding!!!

added to homepage combined with other article

https://www.alipac.us/article-908-thread-1-0.html

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/ne ... 880146.php

Thursday, December 8, 2005

Focus on offenders
Costa Mesa council votes 3-2 for scaled-back plan on immigration enforcement.

By ZAHEERA WAHID and AMY TAXIN
The Orange County Register

Costa Mesa could become the first city in the nation to take on the task of turning over illegal immigrants under a proposal approved early Wednesday.

Mayor Allan Mansoor said the city's plan to train police officers to enforce federal immigration laws will make the community safer.

"The focus is on violent offenders," Mansoor said. "All this does is give us the tool should we need it. ... This will make it safer for the entire public, including those who are in this country illegally and are otherwise law-abiding."

The plan mirrors one being promoted by Orange County Sheriff Mike Carona.

Costa Mesa has grappled with its policy toward illegal immigration for years. Some opponents contend that Wednesday's decision was the latest move in a larger campaign targeting Latino immigrants. They say it comes on the heels of the City Council's disbanding of the human relations committee and a decision to close the city's job center at the end of this month.

"I think there is a pattern here in Costa Mesa," said Humberto Caspa, 42, a political science professor from Costa Mesa.

"I have always thought that Costa Mesa is a microcosm of what is taking place in California," he said. "I honestly believe they don't like the influx of Latinos. ... I think (the proposal will) create a lot of divisions and a lot of resentment in the Latino community."

The city is 32 percent Hispanic and 7 percent Asian, according to the 2000 U.S. Census.

David Kinkade, a Costa Mesa resident, said he sees the policing plan as a way to rid the city of people who commit serious crimes.

"If they're here illegally, they've really overstepped their bounds,'' Kinkade said. "But if you come to the U.S. and stay out of trouble, you're not going to have any problems."

The plan, approved on a 3-2 vote, was a scaled-back version of Mansoor's initial proposal to allow patrol officers to detain illegal immigrants stopped for minor offenses such as jaywalking and soliciting work.

The vote, shortly after 1 a.m. Wednesday, followed several hours of comments from 45 speakers, most of whom opposed the idea.

The council backed a recommendation by Councilman Gary Monahan that the city join the Orange County Sheriff's Department's plan to limit enforcement training to jail personnel and investigators working on felony cases.

Councilwoman Katrina Foley, who voted against the plan, said it was rushed through without sufficient review.

"Something like this has the potential to really destroy the relationship that has built up really well over the years" between police and the Latino community, Foley said.

Mansoor said he was motivated by the pent-up frustration over illegal immigration. That was evident in Tuesday's strong showing by Jim Gilchrist, co-founder of the Minuteman Project border patrol group, in the race to fill the 48th congressional district seat.

Enforcement of immigration law will increasingly filter down to the local level, and Costa Mesa is ahead of the game, Mansoor said.

"I believe it's the right thing to do, it needs to be done and I think you'll see other cities jump on board," he said.

Costa Mesa isn't the first city to express an interest in such a program, said Lori Haley, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Cities and counties negotiate agreements with ICE on a case-by-case basis, tailoring programs to their needs. Discussions can take weeks or months, she said.

But the decision has raised concerns among immigrants about how the enforcement will play out.

At the Costa Mesa Job Center, day laborers were asking Wednesday what local police might do once they had the new immigration authority.

Would they ask them for ID on the street? Would they arrest them if they looked for jobs? Or would the police run checks on them only if they were arrested for a crime?

The answer could make a big difference to many day laborers, who live mainly on the city's west side.

Day laborer Francisco Cisneros, 25, said at first he was worried police would start pulling people over at any time to ask for ID. But he said he could understand police running checks on someone as part of a serious criminal probe.

"If someone steals, kills or uses drugs, it's fine to investigate" their status, he said.

Costa Mesa resident Paty Madueño said if she can't stop the plan from moving forward, she would work to make sure there is no abuse.

"If this is countywide or citywide, we want to be part of that policy," said Madueño, a 25-year resident and leader of a church-based organization that has worked with Carona on his plan.

"We want to make sure it is going to target the serious criminals and going to protect our community."