Thread: Fischer Homes Raided By Agents In Northern Kentucky

Hopefully, Americans will get their jobs back. Construction is one of the hardest hit by Illegal Aliens.

Quote: "If I have to leave, I will leave ... ," Mauricio said. "But don't treat me like an animal. ... We have rights. Why? Because this is the land of God. The only thing we don't have is papers, identification."

They were not treated like animals they were arrested for being in the country illegally and they do not have rights other than to be deported.

http://news.communitypress.com/apps/pbc ... 1079/Local

Wednesday, May 10, 2006; Posted: 11:15 a.m. EDT
Immigration raids impact builder, community
BY AMANDA VAN BENSCHOTEN | COMMUNITY RECORDER STAFF WRITER
COVINGTON --Gilberto Esparza's cell phone rang nonstop Tuesday with calls from people like "the mother who just called me and said, 'My husband went to work and never came home.'"

Esparza, director of the Hispanic Resource Center in Covington, is working to provide support to the families of Hispanics arrested Tuesday on illegal immigration charges.

Federal immigration officials began the roundup on Tuesday morning, arresting immigrants at their homes and places of work -- chiefly, Fischer Homes construction sites. They appeared before a federal magistrate on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Four Fischer Homes supervisors were also arrested for aiding, abetting and harboring illegal immigrants, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Construction manager Timothy Copsy, superintendents Doug Witt and William Allison, and assistant superintendent Bill Ring pleaded not guilty to the felony charges in federal court Tuesday and were released on their own recognizance.

ICE agents and local police raided the company's Crestview Hills headquarters and three of its construction sites in Hebron, Union and Florence on Tuesday.

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said in a statement that the arrests are part of an ongoing effort to crack down on illegal immigration.

"We will continue to bring criminal actions against employers who are consistently harboring illegal aliens," he said.

Originally Posted by AllAmerican

The reason, the IRS almost aways wins in court because their witnesses are numbers..hard to beat.

the IRS might win using numbers in federal court, but you wouldn't --

several Boone County Sheriff's deputies and a police helicopter were canvassing the area looking for immigrants.

helicopters? they must have anticipated people would run.

why does it take two years to raid a company that's hiring illegals?

"If I have to leave, I will leave ... ," Mauricio said. "But don't treat me like an animal. ... We have rights. Why? Because this is the land of God. The only thing we don't have is papers, identification."

handcuffing a criminal is normal procedure. I saw on Animal Planet where they handcuffed a man for animal neglect

http://www.wcpo.com/news/2006/local/05/10/framers.html

Immigrant Raid A Help To American-Born Contractors

Reported by: Bill Price
Web produced by: Mark Sickmiller
Photographed by: 9News
First posted: 5/10/2006 5:50:19 PM
Some Tri-state construction workers hope they will be able to get more work after almost 80 illegal immigrants were rounded up in Boone County on Tuesday.

A two year federal investigation of Fischer Homes led to the arrests, many of them at or near home construction sites.

Now, many American-born construction workers say they hope that after the rains subside this week, they'll be called in to work on home building jobs formerly held by suspected illegal immigrants.

Framers, like Josh Egan, say this has been the most difficult year yet to find his kind of work in the Tri-state.

"It's harder to find framer positions nowadays. Most companies hire more illegal immigrants than they have in the past," Egan told 9News.

Egan's framer crew boss says they've been out of work for as long as five months while watching illegal immigrant workers do the jobs they expected.

In addition, Egan says his crew now makes less for building a home's frame now.

"When I used to do custom homes, it was pretty high dollar. But now, I would say it's down at least 30 percent," he said.

His framing crew has been trying to get more work from Fischer Homes for months now, to no avail, mainly because of illegal workers, Egan told 9News.

"We have tried before and they've always said that they're full and they don't need any framers. Now, I'm pretty sure they need some framers."

On a whim, Egan's crew boss did call Fischer Homes Tuesday morning -- and they needed framers.

Egan says he finds it very upsetting to hear that illegal immigrant workers are taking jobs Americans don't want to do.

He says that's not true for his framing work on new homes.

"We're more than happy to fill the position!"

Other workers 9News spoke with, off camera, say they also hope Tuesday's roundups send a message to home builders and contractors about hiring only American-born workers.

They say that will help keep more construction dollars in the local economy, rather than being sent abroad with illegal immigrants.

http://news.kypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar ... 00350/1014

Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Builders group says members cautioned

By Shelly Whitehead
Post staff reporter

Northern Kentucky Homebuilders Association Executive Director Dan Dressman learned about Tuesday's raids on Fischer Homes building sites before he boarded a plane for a trip to Washington.

There he and other members of the organization planned to meet with a congressional delegation to discuss immigration issues relevant to the construction trades.

Dressman said Fischer Homes and the other 150 home building companies that belong to the association are cautioned against hiring undocumented immigrants.

In fact, he said all member builders and remodeling companies are provided with subcontractor agreements, which he said spell out that subcontractors must abide by federal and state labor laws.

"We suggest all builders use the subcontractor agreements ... but we don't check with each of the builders to make sure whether they're using them or getting their subcontractors to sign them," Dressman said.

"We suggest they do because it provides them with a paper trail and ... particularly since 90 percent of home construction today is subbed out."

Dressman said it's common knowledge that the construction trades hire a large number of immigrants to perform physical labor on building sites.

In fact, he said the homebuilders association just completed a training session for Latino immigrants working in the construction trades locally.

Included among those who sought the training were two undocumented immigrants, he said.

They were not permitted to take the course.

Dressman said the importance of immigrant workers to the construction trade motivated his trip to the nation's capitol this week.

He said although the national and local homebuilders association oppose the hiring of illegal aliens on work sites, the associations are lobbying hard for a national plan that acknowledges the construction industry's huge demand for immigrant laborers.

Asked about the timing and target of Tuesday's raids, Dressman noted: "This is an election year, and this (Fischer Homes) is a prominent company. ... So maybe somebody is interested in making an example out of somebody."

http://www.channelcincinnati.com/news/9 ... etail.html

Fischer Fallout Rattles Local Builders

POSTED: 6:00 pm EDT May 10, 2006
UPDATED: 12:00 am EDT May 11, 2006

BOONE COUNTY, Ky. -- Industry insiders said the fallout of a Fischer Homes immigration roundup is already being felt throughout the business.

One industry representative told News 5 that Tuesday's arrests shot across the bow, grabbing the attention of everyone in the building trades.

"I'm getting calls from contractors and homebuilders who are asking me questions about it," said Joe Cleves, of the Northern Kentucky Homebuilders Association. "I think people are going to be more careful now about their hiring practices."

The NKHA represents 150 builders and 50 remodeling companies -- 20,000 people in all. Nine of every 10 builders subcontract certain job specialties.
Click here to find out more!

Subcontractors sign an agreement specifying they are complying with the law.

"It's always been our assumption that means something. Everybody who works for Drees has a Social Security number," a spokeswoman for Drees Home Builders said.

Don Howard, who's scheduled to move into his Fischer home Thursday, said he wonders if the wink and nod that allows cheap, illegal labor will ultimately cost homebuilders and, by extension, drive up the cost for those like him who buy the homes.

Meanwhile, Fischer Homes president Robert T. Hawksley released a statement saying that the company was "fully operational" and that the builder was continuing with "business as usual."



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Egan's framer crew boss says they've been out of work for as long as five months while watching illegal immigrant workers do the jobs they expected.

In addition, Egan says his crew now makes less for building a home's frame now.

"When I used to do custom homes, it was pretty high dollar. But now, I would say it's down at least 30 percent," he said.

His framing crew has been trying to get more work from Fischer Homes for months now, to no avail, mainly because of illegal workers, Egan told 9News.

No hablo espanol, no yob gringo.

"We have tried before and they've always said that they're full and they don't need any framers. Now, I'm pretty sure they need some ramers."

LOL! Ya think?

On a whim, Egan's crew boss did call Fischer Homes Tuesday morning -- and they needed framers.

Gosh, I wonder how long before Fischer Homes goes belly up by being "forced" to hire American workers for the time being. We keep hearing how the contruction industry, among other industries, couldn't possibly survive without "immigrant labor" so lets see how long it takes before Fischer Homes gets shuttered. [insert sarcasm here]


Seriously though, why did it take two years of "investigation" before this bust went down? Even if every ICE agent is working with nothing more than a junior detective kit, it shouldn't have taken any more than 2 weeks to find sufficient reasonable cause.

Just more B.S. I am afraid.

Meanwhile, Fischer Homes president Robert T. Hawksley released a statement saying that the company was "fully operational" and that the builder was continuing with "business as usual."

Of course Mr. Hawksley might have to put off, for the time being, the major renovation job he had planned for his 3rd vacation home.

"It's always been our assumption that means something. Everybody who works for Drees has a Social Security number," a spokeswoman for Drees Home Builders said.

This is getting old. Illegals just make these numbers up. You don't even need a card. They just make up the right number if digits in random order. I was on another forum where I read these people brag about how easy it is to make up SS#. Now, if you really want to check like Lowe's in our area, then it can be done. We all know they don't check because they don't want the answer they will get. You know what they say "ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law".