Thread: MD: Leopold targets jailed illegal immigrants

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Leopold targets jailed illegal immigrants
Deportations could soar under new county policy
By ERIN COX, Staff Writer
Published April 04, 2008

A new county policy that quickly refers arrested immigrants to federal authorities has significantly increased the number of undocumented immigrants facing deportation.
The policy is the most recent anti-illegal immigration move by County Executive John R. Leopold, who has emerged at the forefront regionally for using local government resources to crack down on immigrants.
Last month, Anne Arundel jails began reporting foreign-born inmates to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as soon as inmates are arrested, instead of sending a weekly list.

Since the change was instituted on March 6, 45 people have been reported to ICE, nearly half have been flagged for possible deportation, and 13 have been released into federal custody. During the first two months of the year, under the weekly reporting system, the jails released three people to ICE officials for deportation.

Mr. Leopold announced results of the new policy yesterday, saying in a press release "those who have refused to follow federal law by entering the country, who then go on to engage in criminal activity, deserve to be bumped to the front of the deportation line."

Advocates for the immigrant community argue Mr. Leopold's policy can quickly become a form of racial profiling that breeds distrust - both from legal and illegal immigrants.

"It creates a fear, a distrust of the police in immigrant communities," said Kerry O'Brien, manager of the legal program at CASA de Maryland, a nonprofit group that advocates for Hispanic immigrants. "The police can benefit greatly from cooperation of the immigrant community in solving crimes - major crimes - and getting serious criminals off the streets."

Most of the inmates referred to immigration officials were arrested on traffic charges, such as driving without a license or for misdemeanor crimes, Detention Center Superintendent Robin Harting said.

The weekly reporting system was too slow for ICE to conduct an investigation, and inmates would be released on bond or by judges before they could be flagged for deportation, Ms. Harting said.

At least two other counties in Maryland use an equally expeditious method to report undocumented immigrants, according to county and ICE officials.

"Their participation and level of cooperation is above and beyond," ICE spokesman Dorothy Herrera said. "It's what we're striving for in every community."

Ms. O'Brien said her organization has received several calls from immigrants in Anne Arundel recently, and that one man now facing deportation was initially pulled over for having a cracked windshield.

"What we fear, and what really is happening, is it basically targets immigrants, people who look foreign or sound foreign ... It basically becomes a form of racial profiling, and I don't think that the residents of Anne Arundel County would support that."

Mr. Leopold said he believes county residents support cutting off government help to illegal immigrants and that residents resent competing for jobs with undocumented workers or facing an unlevel playing field in business.

"There's a strong sense that illegal means illegal, and that resources should be used to help people who are here legally, for citizens, and not to reward those who are in the country illegally," Mr. Leopold said.

Last May, Mr. Leopold cut grant funding to nonprofits that did discern between aiding legal and legal immigrants. In August, he issued an executive order requiring all county contractors to sign an affidavit swearing the company did not employ illegal workers. Other Maryland counties later followed suit.

Efforts by local governments to crack down on immigration come in the vacuum of federal action to fix what is widely considered a broken immigration system.

For example, on Tuesday in Prince William County in northern Virginia, the police chief told county leaders nearly 100 people had been questioned about their immigration status since that county began a crackdown the month before, according to news reports.

Mr. Leopold said yesterday he intends to fund another position in the police department next year so that a full-time officer can be dedicated to helping immigration officials investigate crimes here.

Meanwhile, Anne Arundel's immigrant population appears to be increasing. Census figures show the county's foreign-born population grew 32 percent from 2000-2006, and now 30,748 immigrants live here.

Although Mr. Leopold would not reveal whether his department heads were working on more programs to target illegal immigrants, he said, "They know from my policy that I established at the outset of my administration that I take illegal immigration seriously."

www.hometownannapolis.com

The invasion of ILLEGAL ALIENS seems to be getting worse everyday.