Thread: Officials explain their failure to deport illegal that murde

Agency can't explain records lapse: Immigration didn't have illegal immigrant's (The one that murdered Scott Gardner) DWI arrests in database
Nearly 1,000 undocumented immigrants have been arrested in North Carolina since October, most with criminal records, a federal immigration spokeswoman said Friday. (illegal immigration, crimes, laws, Americans, Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Murder, Scott Gardner's family)

7/24/2005
JIM MORRILL
Charlotte Observer

But Sue Brown couldn't say why officials had no record of multiple drunken-driving arrests by an illegal immigrant charged with DWI in the weekend death of a Gaston County man.

"We prioritize and get the people who are going to be killing us and maiming us and injuring our children," said Brown, a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security's Immigration and Customs Enforcement branch, or ICE.

"That's what we do. We go after those people first."

The agency has come under fire since Scott Gardner of Mount Holly was killed when his car was hit in Brunswick County by a truck driven by Ramiro Gallegos, 25. It was the fourth time in three years that Gallegos, from Mexico, was charged with driving while impaired.

U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick, a Charlotte Republican, has asked Homeland Security officials to explain what she describes as their failure to enforce immigration laws. U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre, a Lumberton Democrat, plans to raise similar concerns next week.

"This is not a partisan issue," said McIntyre, whose district includes Brunswick County. "This is an issue that affects every American citizen and family, and the Department of Homeland Security needs to hear that loud and clear.

"...What's happened to the Gardner family should not go unanswered."

Brown said her agency typically learns of criminal charges against illegal immigrants from its own investigators and local law enforcement. Gallegos' previous arrests apparently never came to the attention of ICE.

"We will be looking to find out exactly why that happened, why he wasn't in our database," she said. "But we don't want to point fingers. ... We are going to be working as hard as we possibly can with (Myrick), with our law enforcement partners to make sure this never happens again."

The stiffest DWI sentence Gallegos received was 30 days in jail -- after his third charge.

The state has an estimated 300,000 illegal immigrants. This week officials targeted Gallegos for deportation, whether he's convicted or not.

Details of his previous arrests -- including any efforts to contact immigration -- were not available Friday from the Brunswick County Sheriff's Department or the N.C. Highway Patrol.

Highway Patrol Sgt. Carlton Albritton, a supervisor over Brunswick County, said officers rarely know a suspect's legal status. He said they run names through a database to see if the suspect is wanted by immigration or other authorities.

Brown said ICE focuses on illegal immigrants accused of serious felonies such as murder, rape and sexual abuse. Drunken driving is a misdemeanor.

More than half the 953 people arrested by immigration agents had criminal records, she said. The number includes 14 Charlotte fugitives, most of whom had convictions ranging from theft and forgery, to larceny and weapons charges. All had been ordered deported but fled.

Some police agencies say they don't bother to call immigration when illegal immigrants are charged.

"That is a common theme," said Marshall Fitz, an associate director of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Either police stop calling because immigration officers rarely show up or they say they are concentrating on more serious crimes, he said.

Brown said immigration authorities know there are cracks in the system.

"We're not perfect," she said. "(But) we have very good cooperation with our partners."

Update on Tina Gardner and Suspect

Illegal immigrant Ramiro Gallegos remained in the Brunswick County Jail Friday in connection with a crash that killed Scott Gardner of Mount Holly. Gardner's wife, Tina, remained in critical condition. The couple's children suffered minor injuries.

http://www.alipac.us/article-560-thread-1-0.html

"We're not perfect," she said. "(But) we have very good cooperation with our partners."

Your enforcement record is abysmal.

Why do these people need deportation hearings to begin with? They're here illegally and should have NO rights. ICE should invest in armoured trailway buses, fill them up, and return these people daily to Mexico! Fourteen ordered deported but fled? I wonder why.

I can't BELIEVE they even had the gall to say they weren't "perfect". They are absolutely SORRY. At least, they did arrest those 48 at Seymour Johnson AFB. Wonder where they are now???

And, I agree about those deportation hearings. I think I've heard that 90% of the people don't even show up and I've wondered all along why they needed any hearing. If they have already determined them to be here illegally, they should be back in Mexico within 24 hours. I also have heard that they've started flying them back rather than putting them on a bus because the bus would take them to the closest town across the border and drop them off. How long do you think they stayed before they came right back?? So, now they put them on a plane and take them to the southernmost point and let them have to work their way back up. Just takes them a little long, I reckon.

I think we need a Volunteer Border Patrol Auxiliary in North Carolina as well as along the border. Wouldn't we be cool???

The stiffest DWI sentence Gallegos received was 30 days in jail -- after his third charge.

Every aspect of this tragedy SCREAMS injustice to the enth degree! We all know that the illegal alien perp should have have been deported after his first arrest, not to mention his second, and third. But the fact that this illegal spent ONLY 30 days in jail (weekends stays no less) for a third DUI is OUTRAGEOUS!

Here in Delaware a 2nd DUI means a MANDATORY jail sentence of six months (serving weekends is NOT an option). A third DUI and the perp faces a MINIMUM sentence of 22 months (usually more) with no good time allowance.

It is clear from my own states "wanted" website that illegals can rack up multiple charges (DUI, driving without a license, driving without insurance) and ellude justice by simply not appearing in court. We need a two strikes your OUT law for illegals. Being here illegally is the first strike, and so much as going 5 miles over a stated speed limit..the second. No exceptions!

A hearty welcome to you had_enuf!

I am jealous of your username already (why didnt I think of that?).

Originally Posted by had_enuf

Why do these people need deportation hearings to begin with? They're here illegally and should have NO rights. :

Under the Constitution for the United States, Article III courts were not vested with jurisdiction to hear felony cases arising under the "law of nations" -- their jurisdiction was restricted to the Constitution and "laws of the United States." The Alien Tort Statute vested the federal courts jurisdiction to hear cases for aliens for tort violations of the "law of nations" -- illegal invasion is not a tort violation, it's a felony