Thread: Officer's death spurs debate over criminal immigrants

Officer's death spurs debate over criminal immigrants

Saturday, September 22, 2007 7:50 PM PDT

Code:

http://www.mohavedailynews.com/articles/2007/09/23/news/state/state1.txt

http://www.mohavedailynews.com/articles ... state1.txt

PHOENIX (AP) - A police officer's death at the hands of an illegal immigrant intensified attention on a recurring situation that frustrates authorities: immigrants who are deported after committing crimes can easily sneak back into the country to break the law again.

Weaknesses in border security and blindspots in immigration policies are cited as the key reasons for authorities not being able to stop the re-entries.

Local authorities said the federal government's inadequate border security is largely to blame. Yet they are divided on whether local police ought to question criminal suspects about their immigration status or whether that duty should continue to be left up to federal immigration agents.

‘‘We have a virtually open border and people are coming and going almost at will, and that is completely unacceptable,'' said Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas, noting that it's fairly common for deported criminal immigrants to re-enter the country and commit other crimes.


While advocates for tougher immigration enforcement have long complained about such re-entries, the death of Phoenix police Officer Nick Erfle on Tuesday brought louder calls for an end to the problem.

The officer was fatally shot by 22-year-old Erik Jovani Martinez, an illegal immigrant who was later fatally shot by police as he pointed a gun at a carjacking victim's head.

Martinez was deported last year, and at some point re-entered the country illegally. Martinez was later arrested for misdemeanor assault in Scottsdale. The arresting officer didn't check Martinez's immigration status.

Sgt. Mark Clark, a Scottsdale police spokesman, said the officer found nothing in a check of local, state and federal records that indicated Martinez was an illegal immigrant or that he should call federal authorities to check his immigration status.

Another Phoenix police officer, Marc Atkinson, was killed in 1999 by an illegal immigrant who had been sent back to Mexico and re-entered the United States.

Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon said the federal government's inability to secure the border and provide its immigration agencies with sufficient resources contributes to the flow of criminal immigrants into the country.

Local and state governments, which have a role in confronting the effects of illegal immigration, aren't in a position to secure the border, Gordon said.

Spokesmen for the U.S. Border Patrol and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, declined to comment.

Retired ICE agent Russell Ahr said stopping all illegal border crossings isn't feasible given the large volume of people sneaking into the country and the limited resources of the U.S. government to confront the problem.

Criminal immigrants have continued to re-enter the country even as security along the country's southern border has tightened over the last five years, Ahr said.

That the re-entries continue isn't a sign that federal immigration agents, who have limited resources for a big job, are neglecting their duties, Ahr said.

While still blaming the federal government for failing to secure the border, some advocates for tougher immigration enforcement said local authorities need to do more.

The federal government has invited these illegals to come in. Something they will not stop. What they have done is to help corporations and businesses make more money and increase their profits at our expense.
The States and maybe I should say mine has there hands full with trying to keep up with the skyrocketing crime that the illegals are causing. It is the federal governments responsibility to protect our nation which is now under attack by these illegals. Bush needs to release the funds to build that 700 mile fence that he promised in 2006. Bush needs to put our military on the border. Bush needs to release money to the states in order for our states to build tent cities to hold these illegals when caught, hire more oficers and provide the transportation to get them out of here. What Bush is doing is bankrupting the states by his lunatic policies.
Our economy is a false economy and we are going broke. Bush has spent every last dime we have. Now he is refusing to give money to fix the problems in our states that he has created.
I know in Utah that our local law enforcement wants the illegals gone. Our state will not give them the authority to arrest and hold them for deportation. Our locial authorities do not have the man power nor the money nor the authority to handle this crisis.

Thanks, I came here to post that but see you beat me to it.

A fine example we can use in our communications.