Thread: IA: Latinos lukewarm to ICE

http://www.ottumwacourier.com/local/loc ... d=topstory

Latinos lukewarm to ICE
By MATT MILNER and LORENA PEREZ Courier staff writers


— OTTUMWA — Chief Jim Clark knows there are a lot of questions about his proposal to add immigration to the Ottumwa Police Department’s list of responsibilities. But he thinks the benefits outweigh the concerns.
Clark wants the city to sign on with a federal program that allows local officers to initiate deportation proceedings against people who are in the country illegally. He said the program adds a new tool for removing violent criminals from Ottumwa.
The program is ICE 287(g). Immigration and Customs Enforcement uses the program as a force multiplier. Immigration is most often a federal enforcement issue, not a local one. But ICE 287(g) brings specially trained local police officers into the picture. That expands the number of people who can monitor compliance with immigration law.
“[ICE], I think, it’s pretty well known that they don’t have the resources that are adequate to enforce immigrations and customs law,” Clark said.
Not everyone is sold. Ottumwa’s immigrant community, which is overwhelmingly Hispanic, is concerned that the program will allow police to target anyone for removal. Jorge Garcia agrees with Clark that criminals should be punished, but he remains concerned about the proposal.
The gap between what police say will happen and what people fear illustrates some of the key issues in immigration and assimilation. Trust, or the lack thereof, runs through it all.
“Who is going to guarantee the families that this will be used in a just way? People that are here illegally are leaving, and people that are here legally are afraid the police might start racial profiling,” Garcia said. “There are many people trying to get illegal people out of here but who is to know, are they going to start branding the people with an I for illegal, an H for Hispanic or U for undocumented?”
Different departments have implemented the program in different ways. Clark envisions Ottumwa’s program as weeding out felons, people who commit violent crimes, or major drug dealers. There will be an internal vetting process. ICE proceedings can only begin with Clark’s direct approval.
“It will never be the officer’s sole decision,” he said.
The program’s main cost is associated with the initial, five-week training. He said once the program is running, the duties are part of the officers’ normal work and will not create new expenses. Clark estimates costs at $3,500 for room and board; the training itself is free.
Much depends on where the training takes place. Two locations are possible. The first is in Glencoe, Ga., at the federal government’s training facility. The other is Marshalltown. The cost difference isn’t what you might expect. Marshalltown adds the cost of a five-week hotel stay, while officers training at Glencoe may have the option of staying at the training facility.
There are more factors than money, too. Being in Marshalltown makes it easier for the officers being trained since they can come home on weekends. They are also closer in case of emergency.
The training itself raises some concerns. Norma Rosales, the former chairwoman of Davenport Civil Rights Commission and a member of Latinos Unidos of Ottumwa, questioned whether five weeks is sufficient to train officers to enforce immigration law.
“Immigration officials receive 17 weeks of training plus time at the border before they can become immigration agents. How can our local officers receive immigration training in only five weeks?” she asked.
Miguel Ornelas, the newest member of the Ottumwa Human Rights Commission, said many immigrants are wary of law enforcement because of corruption and abuse in their home countries. Father Bernie Weir with St. Mary’s of the Visitation Catholic Church in Ottumwa said many Latinos fear that even a well-intentioned program could be misused to exile people.
“Even if the program or document is intended to be good, whenever the word ‘immigration’ is mentioned, it threatens where and how people are going to live. People will constantly be living on the edge, not knowing if immigration is going to be coming. People that have documents are scared they will be taken away,” he said.
Clark conceded that some authorities in other areas of this country haven’t given immigrants many reasons to trust.
A situation in Nashville, Tenn., is a case in point. A mother of two was pulled over on a traffic stop. She entered the country legally, but her work visa had since expired. Local law enforcement brought in federal agents to begin deportation proceedings.
The woman’s family argues that she is a productive member of the community and came to the country properly. They also worry that gangs in her home country will target her when she returns. To them, this is a case of overzealous enforcement removing the kind of person communities want to have.
“I agree. That’s ridiculous. That should never happen,” Clark said. “This is the nightmare everyone is afraid of. This program should be used for violent and serious offenders.”
The Human Rights Commission backed the proposal unanimously, Clark said, with some reservations. He said the commission is worried that there is potential for abuse.
Commission member Ed Ball said the proposal sounds good, but said he would prefer approval “with the condition that a bilingual officer would be hired for this position ... and not just a bilingual officer, but someone who knows both cultures.”
That could take some time. There is an opening in the department, but it is not clear when it will be filled. The department has specific state guidelines it must follow on hiring officers.
“I was told by one person that in case of emergency, we should ignore the civil service laws,” Clark said. “We can’t do that. We have to hire off the civil service lists. We have one opening ... but because of the hiring freeze, we are unable to fill that position.”
The program cannot begin anytime soon, even if Ottumwa’s city council moves on it without delay. Training takes five weeks and there is no guarantee of a training session in the immediate future.
Clark said it could be a year or more before the program finally begins in Ottumwa. The council must approve the program before that clock even starts running.
Councilwoman Shannon Addison said she saw violent criminals among the immigrant community in Florida, but doesn’t see the same degree of criminality here. She said her concerns focus on whether the federal government will hold up its end of the bargain more than Clark keeping his word.
“We had a hard time getting the feds to come in and take them off our hands [in Florida],” she said. “I have no doubt that Jim Clark ... knows how best to implement the program. He wouldn’t be lackadaisical.”
Ottumwa would be among the smaller locations for local enforcement of immigration law. That concerns Addison. Clark said Ottumwa probably won’t be alone in Iowa if it adopts the program. Marshalltown’s police chief told Clark 20 different agencies in the state, including the Division of Criminal Investigation and Iowa State Patrol, are interested.
The proposal is scheduled for council discussion on Feb. 6.

ICE is not working. When is this federal agency going to be held accountable for not doing its job? Instead of the border patrol agents being jailed, senior ICE agents should be going to jail for not doing their jobs.

Who cares if Latinos don't like ICE? ICE should not be liked by illegals and most illegals are Latinos.

This is a major mistake on the part of the city.

http://www.ktvotv3.com/Global/story.asp ... 1&nav=1LFs

Citizens fight immigration program

Jan 31, 2007

(OTTUMWA) Some Ottumwa citizens are doing all they can to stop the city council from approving an Immigration and Customs Enforcement program.

Members of the local Latinos Unidos group held a press conference Wednesday to make their concerns known about the new 287G program.

287G allows local officers to enforce U.S. immigration laws after a period of training. Ottumwa Police Chief Jim Clark said if the council approves the program, it will help help get violent criminals such as gang members out of the area.

The Latinos Unidos members say the potential program is already scaring the Hispanic community.

"How would I, an American citizen, expect the police department to do their job. They're going to be busy doing immigration work," Latinos Unidos Member, Norma Rosales, said.

The council will put the issue to a vote at its meeting next week.

http://www.ktvotv3.com/Global/story.asp ... 6&nav=1LFs

Proposed immigration plan under fire

(OTTUMWA) A proposed immigration program is coming under fire.

With a large Latino population in Ottumwa, citizen groups like Latinos Unidos are rallying against the 287G program, but police say the plan would keep violent crime out of Ottumwa.

About 250 signatures fill petition papers, and they were all from Ottumwa residents against 287G.

Members of Latinos Unidos have petitions circulating around the City of Bridges that they'll present to the city council next week. Some petitions could be found at Saint Mary Catholic Church.

KTVO talked to Father Bernie Weir, who is firmly against the proposed program. Many Latino members of his church have expressed their concerns. Weir said he does not see a reason for local police to enforce federal immigration laws.

"The fear is that once this is in place, it will expand. We do think the city council and the chief of police will be pressured to include anyone who might be in this country undocumented," Weir said.

Are you confused about the program, yet? Police Chief Jim Clark laid it out.

"If we should happen to arrest an undocumented person for an offense like sexual abuse, where they got probation, we initiate the process of having them deported," Clark said.

He said the program focuses on getting violent criminals such as drug traffickers, gang members, and child molesters out of Ottumwa.

"If we have the opportunity to remove that person from the community, I think we should take advantage of that tool," Clark said.

Latinos Unidos members said they have contacted council members about their concerns. Mayor Dale Uehling assured KTVO that the city would take control of the program if it is approved.

"The city council, mayor, city administrator, as well as the chief of police will be monitoring this to make sure it is administered fairly and not over used, and we certainly don't want any profiling," Uehling said.

At a press conference organized by Latinos Unidos, members had numerous concerns.

"The reality is, is that people are going to fear the police and they might leave the city," Latinos Unidos Member, Norma Rosales, said.

They argue that the Hispanic community will constantly worry about deportation. Because of this fear, they'll be less apt to report a crime, which would increase the number of unreported incidences around the city.

"It's going to hurt the whole community, when crime goes unreported, the whole community is going to suffer," Latinos Unidos Member, Himar Hernandez, said.

Police say this program will only help the community, but in Ottumwa with Latinos making up nearly 10% of the population, their concerns play a big role in the upcoming decision.

"They are a very important part of our community and out economy," Uehling said.

Council members will make their final decision on Tuesday, but KTVO wondered what they were thinking.

"I believe at the present time from what the council members have told me that they will probably make an affirmative decision," Uehling said.

If the city council approves the program at Tuesday's meeting, Chief Clark will contact immigration to continue with the process of getting everything started.

Clark said other agencies in Iowa have also shown interest in the immigration program, including the Iowa State Patrol and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

Please see the focus campaign thread:
http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=F ... ic&t=53069