Thread: NC - DWI Arrests and Illegal Immigrants

Shocking percentage of DWI arrests involve suspected illegal immigrants

Posted: Nov 25, 2008 12:10 AM EST
Updated: Nov 25, 2008 12:19 AM EST
By Tom Roussey - bio | email

CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - It's been over 3 years since Emily Moose lost her son Scott -- a popular Gaston County teacher -- to a drunk driver. Scott's wife Tina remains in a vegetative state, her young children being raised by her parents.

Emily says one fact has made this especially hard to deal with: "It could have been prevented. My son didn't have to die."

Garder is one of a number of people in our area who've died in accidents caused by drunk illegal immigrants. The man who pled guilty in Gardner's case is Ramiro Gallegos. He'd been in court before and convicted of DWI before.

"We as a family and all the others with us have been betrayed by a failed and broken system that should have worked properly in the beginning," Emily told WBTV.

A WBTV Investigation reveals what Gallegos did hasn't stopped. We went through every single Mecklenburg DWI arrest on weekends this month: 25% of the arrests were suspected illegal immigrants. That means one out of of every four people arrested for DWI was an alleged illegal immigrant.

Some days are worse than others. On Sunday, November 9th, nearly half of the 13 DWI arrests were suspected illegals.

"it's wrong for everybody to drink and drive!" said Maudia Melendez with Jesus Ministry Inc. She says local Hispanic media have been pounding home the message to immigrants not to drink and drive, and she feels its happening less.

She questions whether Latino illegal immigrants are really drinking and driving more than any other group, or whether police are just arresting them more.

"Can you show me why you have such a high percentage? Did you go to directly to where they live, or were checkpoints close by to where they live?"

Local congresswoman Sue Myrick has been trying for several years now to get the Scott Gardner Act passed. Among other things, It would automatically deport any illegal immigrant convicted of DWI. Moose feels it would save lives.

http://www.wbtv.com/global/story.asp?s=9409464

Local congresswoman Sue Myrick has been trying for several years now to get the Scott Gardner Act passed. Among other things, It would automatically deport any illegal immigrant convicted of DWI.

Man! Does that work for me? Damn skippy it does! I sure do wish these articles were coming from a place closer to my home ( Johnston CO.). I just went to look if the N&O or WRAL were reporting on these same things... of course not! We need to be sheltered from the truth, or so THEY believe.

If they have moved into our country, immigrants or illegal aliens and want to be drunks and get out on our roads to kill us, they should be deported. I'm sorry, but I don't even want to excuse immigrants of this crime. There's absolutely no excuse to do it and DWI is more dangerous than weapons posession because you can kill a whole bus load of people with one automobile crash.

Many of the DWI arestees are repeat offenders.

Dixie

Myrick will push again for bill involving illegal immigrants and drunk driving

Posted: Nov 25, 2008 07:55 PM PST

Updated: Nov 25, 2008 08:30 PM PST


By Tom Roussey

CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - An On Your side investigation exposed just how bad the problem of illegal immigrants getting DWIs is here in Mecklenburg County.

Our analysis found one out of every four people arrested for D-W-I on weekends this month is a suspected illegal immigrant.

This is not a new issue. Congresswoman Sue Myrick has been trying to make D-W-I a deportable offense since 2005.

"It's just frustrating as the Dickens that we can't get something done to stop it," she told WBTV.

Three years ago she first introduced the Scott Gardner Act in memory of a Gaston County man killed by an illegal immigrant who was driving drunk.

She says our investigation is evidence the bill is needed.

"This is a problem that's literally all over the country," Myrick said. "Some areas worse than others, but there's no excuse for it."

The Scott Gardner Act would automatically deport any illegal immigrant convicted of DWI, and would give cops better access to immigration records to tell who's illegal.

Behind Myrick's support it passed the House in 2005, but it's never passed the Senate. That upsets Gardner's mother, Emily Moose.

"My son didn't have to die," Moose said. "And had the information been available and the laws enforced and the new law in place, he would be here today, taking care of his family."

Myrick says she'll try again in January. The Republican says even with Democrats in control of Congress, she's hopeful, since some Democrats have worked with her on the bill.

"This is not a Democrat Republican issue, this is an American issue. We have a problem that needs to be dealt with, and it's a justice problem."

Angeles Ortega-Moore, the head of the Latin American Coalition in Charlotte, says she supports the Scott Gardner Act. But she thinks along with it, illegal immigrants should have an easier time getting help for drinking problems. She says in America they often can't get help because of their immigration status.

http://www.wbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=9416217

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http://www.alipac.us/article-3768--0-0.html