Thread: Salt Lake City Police Chief Protecting Illegal Aliens

Salt Lake City Police Chief Protecting Illegal Aliens
By Ronald W. Mortensen, June 3, 2010

Not too long ago, Salt Lake City Police Chief Chris Burbank was in Washington along with other big-city police chiefs. They met with Attorney General Eric Holder to complain about how the newly enacted Arizona law (SB 1070) would inevitably lead to racial profiling of illegal aliens and how unfair it was.

So, just how fair is Chief Burbank?

Chief Burbank, who denies that he sees things in terms of race, spends an inordinate amount of time and resources proving that Latinos do not commit crimes in excessively high numbers. However, the chief fails to distinguish between Latinos who are legally in the United States and the estimated 100,000 illegal aliens in Utah who are primarily Latinos. (Note: Police Chief Burbank is the one who specifically focuses on Latino crime and it was the authors of a study that he commissioned who said, "Salt Lake City's immigrant population is predominantly Latino").

In addition, Chief Burbank conveniently overlooks the fact that a senior Social Security Administration official estimates that about 75 percent of all illegal aliens have fraudulent Social Security numbers. This is a felony. So, unless 75 percent of the general population is committing major felonies, it would appear that illegal aliens do indeed commit crime at an inordinately high rate.

In addition, based on investigations by Utah Workforce Services and the Utah Attorney General's office, it is estimated that at least 50,000 Utah kids under age 18 have their identities being used primarily by illegal aliens to get jobs.

Under Utah law the use of another person's identifying data, including their Social Security number, either knowingly or unknowing. is identity fraud, a felony.

Furthermore, according to the Federal Trade Commission, which tracks identity theft, 16 percent of all identity theft in Utah is committed mainly by illegal aliens in order to get jobs.

So what does Chief Burbank do about this massive, illegal-alien-driven identity theft felonies? Nothing. Nada. Rien. Zero.

Therefore, is it any wonder that the chief's phony study on crime shows that illegal-alien-driven crime is not higher than crime committed by other groups?

Of course it isn't when you sacrifice tens of thousands of Utah children to identity theft by turning a blind eye to document fraud and identity theft committed by the vast majority of illegal aliens.

Of course it isn't when you are a sanctuary city and give illegal aliens immunity from arrest.

Of course it isn't when you refuse to ascertain whether those your officers arrest are in the United States legally or not.

And of course it isn't when you openly tell a Salt Lake Tribune reporter that you do not believe in upholding and enforcing laws that you don't agree with. According to the Tribune, when discussing the new Arizona law (SB1070) Burbank said: "When you talk about someone who is sworn to uphold the law, does that mean you uphold a law that is prejudicial or unethical or immoral? That's why I'm standing up now, and hopefully we don't get to that point so we don't have to face those decisions."

So there you have it. Salt Lake City's police chief refuses to enforce Utah's document fraud and identity theft laws, grants immunity to illegal aliens from arrest, refuses to identify the immigration status of Latinos who are arrested, and supports "police nullification" of laws that he believes to be prejudicial, unethical, or immoral.

Why then would anyone believe what Chief Burbank says about the overall crime rate of illegal aliens, or anything else for that matter? And why would a major city have a police chief who employs a sanctuary city policy and believes that he has the right to ignore or nullify laws that does not agree with?

http://www.cis.org/mortensen/salt-lake-police-chief

Related
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-197607-burbank.html

I wonder if the Chief has seen this report


http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-197607-burbank.html

Sounds to me based on the assessment of 50,000 kids under 18 in Utah have their identity stolen that he should be requesting a subponae to the social security administration for a list of all employers within his city limits who SSA records indicate are employing illegal aliens. They have the data, now whether they will release it even under subpoena is another question. The SSA master file index on each individual social security number has the W-2 info with the social security number on it and has the employers federal tax ID number to trace it back easily to the employer.

Start with the biggest violators first and work your way down. Arrest all the indentity thieves as you move from employer to employer.

Guess I will take my 11 year old Son's birth certificate and socia security card to the local SSA office and have them check and see if any earnings have been recorded against his number. The answer should be no so if there is I will request the employer that the record shows and file an identity theft complaint with the law enforcement agency in that employers jurisdiction.

SLC police chief honored for immigration stand

By Jennifer W. Sanchez

The Salt Lake Tribune
Updated: 06/10/2010 11:14:29 PM MDT

West Valley City » A public safety organization honored Salt Lake City Police Chief Chris Burbank Thursday for his opposition to mandates that would make police officers enforce U.S. immigration law.

Burbank has publicly spoken against Utah lawmakers considering a measure similar to the Arizona law that requires police to verify the legal status of anyone reasonably suspected of being in the country without proper U.S. documentation.

Sen. Luz Robles, D-Salt Lake, said Utah is facing "difficult times" when it comes to the immigration discussion. She admires Burbank's dedication to keep separate public safety and immigration enforcement.

"He's gone beyond the call of duty to advocate for human rights," she said Thursday during an awards dinner at the Utah Cultural Celebration Center.

Burbank was presented with a plaque by the Latino Community Information and Education Center, an advocacy group based in West Valley City. Six others were honored at the event. The advocacy group hosts an annual public safety conference. The free event is Saturday at the celebration center.

A few speakers talked about law enforcement working in the Latino community, but no one specifically mentioned the Arizona law.

Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon and Elder Rodolfo Franco, of the Quorum of the Seventy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, did not mention anything about immigrants or immigration issues. Franco talked about instilling principles in today's youth to cut down on crime in the future and Corroon discussed the importance of getting inmates treatment for substance abuse and mental illness.

Utah Highway Patrol Col. Daniel Fuhr said Latinos don't need to be fearful of his department. He said the department did not arrest anyone last year based on their immigration status.

"Our goal is public safety and public safety alone," he said.

Unified Police Department Deputy Chief Shane Hudson encouraged Latinos to join the "law enforcement family." His department is 15 percent Latino, but it doesn't reflect the larger Latino community it serves, he said. Hudson said law enforcement needs to learn more about the ethnically diverse residents they serve.

"We need to reach out and understand where others have come from," he said.

Kiko Cornejo, the center's director, said some 35 people were nominated for the awards that go to groups, businesses and people who are working on issues or providing services in the Latino community.

Burbank is an example of how law enforcement officials can work well with diverse communities.

"He's always been available to the Latino community," Cornejo said.

Burbank in May joined fellow law enforcement officials from across the nation in a meeting in Washington, D.C., with U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to relay concerns over Arizona's new immigration law and how it will dampen crime-fighting efforts.

Burbank said the law is "caught up in hatred" and distorts the mission of law enforcement providing public safety.

"There's a lot of things law enforcement can do," he said. "But, should we?"

He said he's proud of how far law enforcement has come since he started some 20 years ago when it comes to diverse communities.

"We should not allow ourselves to take steps backwards," he said.

http://www.sltrib.com/D=g/ci_15274188

Police chief, lawmakers trade barbs over illegal immigration

by Matt Canham

Updated: 06/17/2010 07:16:40 PM MDT

Salt Lake City's police chief testified Thursday before Congress, accusing a group of state legislators of using "racist rhetoric" in an attempt to enact an "obvious xenophobic agenda."

One of those state lawmakers -- Rep. Carl Wimmer, R-Herriman -- responded later in the day by saying Chief Chris Burbank is "clearly race baiting."

"He is using race as a weapon in his arguments. He really needs to focus more on enforcing the law rather than implementing the law," Wimmer said.

This comes six months before the state Legislature will reconvene and take up what is expected to be a major immigration bill, at least partially based on the Arizona law that sparked a nationwide controversy. Arizona's law requires law enforcement to investigate the immigration status of anyone reasonably believed to be in the nation illegally, which Burbank argues leads directly to racial profiling.

Immigration is normally a federal issue and a civil, not criminal, violation. But states, frustrated by inaction on the federal level, are starting to come up with their own ways to temper the recent rise in undocumented immigration, largely by asking police to enforce federal laws.

Arizona's immigration enforcement has drawn the ire of President Barack Obama and leading Democrats in Washington, including those on the House Judiciary Committee, who invited Burbank to testify on racial profiling. Others participating in Thursday's hearing include a representative of the NAACP, a Sikh group, a Muslim organization and a few university professors.

Burbank focused his remarks on legislative attempts to require local police to round up illegal immigrants.

"Requiring local police agencies to enforce federal immigration laws is contrary to our mission, marginalizes significant segments of the population and ultimately harms effective community policing," he said. "We function best when we are a part of, not apart from, the community."

He argued that since the nation's founding, policy makers have used law enforcement to oppress minorities, whether African American slaves in the 1800s or Japanese Americans during World War II.

"We are still struggling to repair the mistrust, resentment and rage that many communities continue to feel," Burbank told the committee. He also said the debate over a new state immigration law has strained relationships with Salt Lake City's growing Latino community.

Burbank ripped state lawmakers, though he didn't use any names, for saying Latinos commit crime at higher rates than other groups or that undocumented immigrants are responsible for a large number of violent crimes.

"It is unconscionable that persons are attempting to misuse their elected office and law enforcement to advance an obviously xenophobic agenda," he wrote in his submitted remarks. "In a recent debate, a Utah state representative publicly stated that a lack of proficiency with the English language amounted to reasonable suspicion to stop and detain an individual. This clearly constitutes racial profiling."

Burbank clarified that Salt Lake's murder rate hit a historic low in 2009, with only four homicides. Also, the city has a policy against asking witnesses or victims of crime about their immigration status.

His criticisms of lawmakers stem from a televised debate he had with Wimmer on KSL in April. While tense, it was far less biting than his comments submitted to Congress.

When reached for comment Thursday, Wimmer said legislators would work with interested parties to develop a law cracking down on illegal immigration without resorting to racial profiling and whether Burbank likes it or not, he will enforce it.

"Illegal is a status, it is not a race. Chief Burbank doesn't seem to understand that," said Wimmer, who is working with Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, R-Orem, on the legislation. Wimmer and Sandstrom are prominent members of the influential Patrick Henry Caucus.

Sandstrom visited Arizona at the start of the month and expressed concern about the issue of racial profiling. He doesn't want to follow Arizona's "vague" standard of reasonable suspicion, instead he favors requiring officers to have probable cause to question someone about his or her immigration status.

"I want to make sure people realize this is not targeted at a certain group of people," Sandstrom said at the time. "Being Hispanic is not probable cause."

http://www.sltrib.com/D=g/ci_15320621