Thread: TX-Report: Low-risk, legal immigrants being deported

Report: Low-risk, legal immigrants being deported

Travis County spent $1.3 million on inmates detained by federal program
By Juan Castillo

Published: 8:21 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, 2010


A federal program to identify and deport dangerous criminal immigrants has been routinely scooping up legal and unauthorized immigrants with little or no criminal history, according to a locally generated study released this week by the Immigration Policy Center in Washington.

According to the study, 57 percent of immigrants identified by the Criminal Alien Program in 2009 had no criminal convictions, up from 53 percent in 2008.

Written by Austin attorney Andrea Gruttin, the report, "The Criminal Alien Program: Immigration Enforcement in Travis County Texas," covers the history of what it describes as a problematic program responsible for deporting hundreds of thousands of immigrants.

The program is managed in local jails by federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers who cull through the jail population looking for those who are in the country illegally and who are considered dangerous because of their criminal backgrounds.

The study concludes that the majority of immigrants caught up in the program had been arrested on misdemeanor charges. In 2008, 58 percent of the detainers were placed on people charged with misdemeanors — up from 38 percent in 2007 and 34 percent in 2006.

The program "does not distinguish between the innocent and the guilty, between those who are traffic violators and those who are violent felons, or between victims and aggressors," the report says, adding that the program tends to erode trust between immigrants and local law enforcement.

It found that in 2008, Travis County spent $1.3 million after federal reimbursements to house inmates with detainers from the program. The Travis County sheriff's office disputed that assertion and other conclusions in the report, calling them nothing new. "They just put it in writing," spokesman Roger Wade said.

"Obviously, (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) prioritizes removing dangerous criminals from the country, and no one is going to argue with the importance of doing that," said Michele Waslin, a senior policy analyst for the center. "However, I think this report sheds some light on the effectiveness of doing that through this program.

"Are (those being apprehended) really the worst of the worst, or is there a better way to be spending taxpayer dollars?"

In a statement, the immigration agency referred to the program as an important tool to identify and remove criminal aliens from the United States.

"ICE is committed to smart, effective immigration enforcement that focuses first on criminal aliens that pose a threat to our communities," the statement said.

"In the first four months of fiscal year 2010, the program identified more than 70,000 aliens already present in our nation's jails and prisons."

According to the study, the program apprehended more deportable immigrants than any other federal program. In 2008, the immigration agency charged 221,000 noncitizens under the program.

Critics say the local-federal cooperation through the Criminal Alien Program can have dangerous consequences, which the report notes. Immigrants might be discouraged from reporting crimes or cooperating with police because they fear deportation. Jails might be more crowded, and jail costs could go up. And deportations could separate families with children who are U.S. citizens.

Wade said the jail population has gone down by about 20 percent as ICE detainers have gone up. Of the report's assertion that the program erodes trust in immigrant communities, he said, "We've said all along we've never seen any evidence of that."

Thomas Esparza Jr., an immigration lawyer in Austin and a critic of the program said, "I agree there are dangerous people who need to be apprehended, but (the program) is such a broad net that it catches people with Class B and Class C misdemeanors."

The Immigration Policy Center recommends that federal officials prioritize immigrants who have been convicted of felony offenses rather than low-level offenders. And it recommends that jail status screenings be conducted after conviction, not after arrest.

The center is the research and policy arm of the American Immigration Council. Waslin said it supports reforms that include legalization of unauthorized immigrants who are already in the U.S. and who do not have criminal records, and the creation of legal channels that allow more workers to come to the United States.

jcastillo@statesman.com


http://www.statesman.com/news/local/rep ... 51623.html

Critics say the local-federal cooperation through the Criminal Alien Program can have dangerous consequences, which the report notes. Immigrants might be discouraged from reporting crimes or cooperating with police because they fear deportation. Jails might be more crowded, and jail costs could go up. And deportations could separate families with children who are U.S. citizens.

Awww, too bad, so sad, don't care! ANY means of finding and deporting illegal aliens is a good thing. They are all criminals and we have enough home-grown, we don't need or want more.

ALL criminals are "discourages" from "reporting" crimes or cooperating with police because they are CRIMINALS...DOH! Criminals are separated from their children everyday, so why do illegal aliens expect special treatment? Enforce the damn laws and DEPORT!!! Keep the families together...they can take the kids with them..they'll live free.

Stop the bloody whining already.

Gee, maybe illegal aliens will start obeying traffic laws if they might get deported. Is this a bad thing?

The Pro Amnesty crowd wants to abolish this program and workplace enforcement. They will outlaw state and local enforcement. We will be right back to what enabled millions of illegals to live and work here, without fear.

Here is a section from a study I found on the Internet and I hope I can use it here, as long as I give the credit to the site who posted it.

This is the site:

http://www.cis.org/287greport


And this is the section, which I think is important in many respects:

Shortly after midnight on September 9, 2001, Maryland state trooper Joseph Catalano pulled over a red Mitsubishi rental car traveling 90 mph in a 65 mph zone on I-95 north of Baltimore. The driver, Ziad Jarrah, had a Florida driver’s license and quietly accepted the $270 fine issued by Catalano before continuing on to join his friends at a hotel in New Jersey. Two days later, Jarrah boarded United Airlines flight 93, which he would later pilot into a field near Shanksville, Pa., killing everyone aboard.

In 2001, Trooper Catalano had no way of knowing that Jarrah was an illegal alien who had overstayed his business visitor visa. But in the years since 9/11, dozens of state and local law enforcement agencies have been able to join ranks with federal immigration authorities under the auspices of the 287(g) program to help identify and remove foreign nationals who commit crimes or otherwise pose a threat to our well-being. These state and local agencies are making a significant contribution to public safety and homeland security, not just in their jurisdictions, but for us all.

Most of it is very obvious, but there is also something else I wanted to point out. In this section, they state the following:

But in the years since 9/11, dozens of state and local law enforcement agencies have been able to join ranks with federal immigration authorities under the auspices of the 287(g) program to help identify and remove foreign nationals who commit crimes or otherwise pose a threat to our well-being.

In recent history, there have been attacks from some that say the 287g section was being misused or what have you. I submit to everyone, that an illegal alien who has entered this country is a foreign national who has committed a crime and poses a threat to our well-being.

The definition of well-being is as follows, according to the web site I have also included:

Main Entry: well–be·ing
Pronunciation: \ˈwel-ˈbē-iŋ\
Function: noun
Date: 1582
: the state of being happy, healthy, or prosperous : welfare

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/well-being

It is clear to me, that those who come into this country illegally pose a great threat to our well-being, in every aspect of the definition.

Happy:

We can never be happy that are laws are being broken, our economy is being broken, and the many other reasons why an invasion of this country by illegal aliens is making the majority of legal citizens unhappy.

Healthy:

Comming into this country illegal does not allow for the health screening of those that do and posses a threat.

Prosperous:

Illegal aliens are taking jobs from legal Americans, not jobs Americans won't do. If the jobs were there for them to get, they would.

Welfare:

All of the issues mentioned previously affect our welfare.


This post might be better placed in a topic of its own, but it is this post that made me think about it, because all of the illegal aliens who come into this country have commited crimes just by doing so and should be deported for that reason alone.

mozdzierz:

Thanks, Great Post.

Thank you.