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North Jersey mayor believes municipal laws will not resolve illegal-immigrant problems
By: TODD MCHALE (Mon, Apr/09/2007)


A North Jersey mayor believes municipal laws will not resolve illegal-immigrant problems in his town or any other town, including the Burlington County community of Riverside.

But Donald Cresitello does have a suggestion that he considers workable for Riverside and other municipalities that are searching for solutions to their problems: Deputize police as federal immigration officers.

Cresitello, the mayor of Morristown in Morris County, is leading the charge for Morristown to become the first community in the state to have its police officers trained and deputized by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The governing body in Morristown endorsed Cresitello's plan last month.

Riverside and Hazleton, Pa., were both sued in federal court over local ordinances that make it illegal to hire or rent housing to an illegal immigrant. Hazleton is awaiting a federal judge's ruling as Riverside prepares to defend itself in federal and state court. Neither has begun to enforce their laws.

“I don't think Riverside, Hazleton and all these other towns have the authority to enact these (anti-illegal immigration) ordinances on the local level,” Cresitello said. “They don't have a right to do it.”

In Morristown, officials have “started the process” to be included in ICE's section 287(g) program, Cresitello said.

“All these other towns like Riverside can be accepted, too, if they would just go through the process,” he said.

Section 287(g) of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act authorizes the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to enter into agreements with state and local law enforcement agencies to permit designated officers to perform immigration law enforcement functions.

Local officers must undergo a training program that takes four to five weeks to complete. After training, the local officers function under the supervision of federal immigration officers. They have the authority to determine whether an individual is an illegal alien and eligible for deportation from the United States.

ICE spokesman Mike Gilhooly said 14 law enforcement agencies and correctional institutions across the country have entered the program since 2002.

“We believe it's an outstanding partnership between local, state and federal law enforcement agencies because it's aimed at taking criminals out of our communities,” Gilhooly said.

Since the Mecklenburg County (N.C.) Sheriff's Office received its 287(g) authority in February 2006, nearly 1,000 criminal aliens have been identified and charged with immigration violations. As a result of those charges, 128 aliens have been deported, according to ICE.

Civil rights violations?

Hispanic leaders have voiced concerns that the program gives police “superpowers” that will lead to racial profiling.

Luis J. Diaz, president of the U.S. Hispanic Advocacy Association, told the Township Council in Morristown that he believes the “police superpowers will lead to civil rights violations against all persons of Hispanic descent.”

“Under the proposed plan, a Morristown police officer wearing his immigration agent hat could stop someone of Mexican appearance because of the general perception that a large percentage of undocumented persons are of Mexican origin,” Diaz wrote in a letter to the council prior to its vote last month.

Gilhooly said the ICE training already covers constitutional issues.

“A great deal of the training the officers get centers around immigration law, civil rights law and anti-immigration racial profiling,” Gilhooly said. “

Cresitello said civil rights violations won't be a problem in Morristown.

“If you racially profile, that's a civil rights violation, and does anyone think the township of Morristown wants to open itself to a lawsuit for that?” Cresitello said. “There's plenty of ways to enforce it without racially profiling, either through drunk and disorderly arrests, illegal day labor or even random motor-vehicle stops.”

Why Morristown?

Much like Riverside, Morristown has experienced a wave of illegal immigrants arriving from Latin America in recent years.

Cresitello said he believes up to 1,500 illegal immigrants live in Morristown and hundreds more enter the community daily to work as day laborers.

He said the influx of illegal immigrants has led to increased crime, residential overcrowding and a drain on town services.

“I'm not suggesting the immigrants are more likely to commit crimes ... (but) most of them are young men,” he said. “And you know what happens when there are groups of young people going unsupervised: They party and get in trouble.”

Cresitello said he actually feels sorry for the immigrants who are being taken advantage of by construction contractors and landlords.

“I can't tell you how many times I've asked them, "Why would you pay $500 a month to live in a closet?' ” Cresitello said. “I tell them all the time that if three of them would put their money together, they could get a nice place on their own.”

Regardless, Cresitello believes it's time to take this next step to stop the tide of illegal immigrants flowing into Morristown.

“I think this country is filled with people who are sick and tired of immigrants illegally crossing the border to enter this nation,” Cresitello said. “This is a nation of laws. If we don't enforce these laws, then why do we enforce other laws? The only way the federal government is going to get a handle on this is with help from the local level.”

E-Mail: TODD MCHALE


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