Politics & Government - 25 August 2006

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Some border towns begin strict enforcement of immigration laws




Standing in a cramped federal courtroom in Del Rio, Texas last month, illegal immigrant Walter Oscar Portillo-Machado pleaded with a judge for mercy. But he came to the wrong place for that.

The Salvadoran man was caught along a 210-mile stretch of the Texas-Mexico border that has been set up as zero-tolerance zone for illegal immigration. Instead of merely getting sent back home, immigrants here are arrested, prosecuted, and sometimes sentenced to prison before they are formally kicked out of the country.

The effort began late last year along a border area that includes the Rio Grande border towns of Del Rio and Eagle Pass. It has been hailed by federal officials as a creative use of local and federal resources to tighten the border.

While other border sectors avoided strict enforcement because they did not have enough jail space or prosecutors, authorities in the Del Rio area found bed space elsewhere in the region, assigned federal agents to help prosecute cases and began running illegal immigrants through a courtroom at a rate of one case per minute.

Immigration advocates have criticized the practice, saying it only moves the problem elsewhere along the border and may sacrifice civil liberties for the sake of efficiency.

"There's nothing we're doing that wasn't already on the books," said Hilario Leal Jr., a supervisory Border Patrol agent in the Del Rio sector. "It's nothing new. We just started enforcing the law."

The Del Rio sector also ended the widespread practice of "catch-and-release" that freed most non-Mexican immigrants with a piece of paper ordering them to show up in federal immigration court a month later -- and almost no one did.

Most Mexican citizens with no criminal record who cross outside the Del Rio sector are still escorted back shortly after their arrest. Those from other countries are held in a detention center -- not as criminals serving time -- while the paperwork is being completed to return them to their home countries.

But in the Del Rio sector, every adult illegal immigrant, regardless of their home country, is criminally prosecuted and removed from the country after they have served his sentence.

"They know if they come (to Del Rio) they are going home, they are going to jail," Leal said.

Before the effort began, illegal immigrants came across the river near Del Rio in droves, with Central and South American citizens often surrendering to agents because they knew they would be let go -- after receiving food, water, medical care and sometimes a ride to a bus station, along with their notice to appear in court.

In recent years, the situation had become so hectic that Del Rio sector agents were lucky if they patrolled the border for two hours during an eight or 10-hour shift, Agent Cynthia Bilyk said. The rest of their time was spent processing the immigrants.

Agents in the sector were averaging about 500 arrests a day, Leal said. Now there are fewer than 100 daily arrests, and the reforms are credited with reducing arrests by about 29 percent so far this fiscal year.

While the changes have curbed arrests, freed up agents and other resources, they have not slowed the traffic at the federal courthouse.

The day Portillo-Machado stood shackled and handcuffed in the courtroom, he was surrounded by more than 30 defendants facing the same charge. The judge handled about one guilty plea a minute.

When his name was called, Portillo-Machado said "Cupable," which means guilty in Spanish. He then asked the judge for forgiveness and was later sentenced to 120 days in jail.

Court staff said the day's docket was light in comparison with the average crowd of would-be immigrants that often overflows the courtroom.

Magistrate Judge Dennis Green said the cases are heard quickly, but each defendant meets with a court-appointed lawyer before going to court. If there is any question about an immigrant's potential defense, that person's case is heard separately, the judge said.

The federal court's two Del Rio magistrate judges are hearing about 2,100 cases a month. Their counterparts farther from the border in West Texas are averaging about 140.

Opponents say the process just pushes the problem to other sectors.

"The border is like a balloon," said El Paso immigration lawyer Felipe D.J. Millan. "If it expands in one area, guess what? It still comes in from another area."

Millan also worries that the reforms in the Del Rio sector and a similar plan in southern New Mexico are simply backdoor efforts to criminalize immigrants.

2006-08-25 06:20:59 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Immigration

They keep telling me that their no-no spot doesn't look like a pastrami sandwich, you know how the meat hangs out of the bun.

2006-08-25 06:20:08 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics

Should we "leave" and think about saving American lives and let them fight their own war? Or if we left now, what would it be saying for those who have already given their lives? If we're doing "good" things and changing things for the better for these people then why don't we hear about it! Or is it because nothing is getting done and there's nothing to tell?

2006-08-25 06:19:30 · 16 answers · asked by noditz57 3 in Other - Politics & Government

Many criminal offences are punishable by jail time. I read in the press that a state is filing criminal charges against a company. What I don't understand is how is the office punishable if the crime related to something that was punishable by jail time?

2006-08-25 06:19:13 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Law Enforcement & Police

2006-08-25 06:18:53 · 26 answers · asked by Jon D 1 in Law & Ethics

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for the destruction of Israel. He has stated that he would sacrifice half of Iran if he could destroy Israel.

2006-08-25 06:17:08 · 19 answers · asked by Patriot 2 in Politics

Today the Iraqi Army stood by as looters gutted a British base one day after the camp was turned over to them to serve as a training base. They watched as the camp was stripped of everything .. doors, windows, wooden planks, corrugated roofing and metal pipes became loot. The base had been under almost daily attacks until those 1,200 British troops left on Thurday.

To protect the president’s divine mission the military is under pressure not to disclose that our troops are being murdered by the very Iraqi troops they are under orders to arm and train. Its an unforgivable betrayal to years later learn that their loved ones were killed by the very Iraqi soldiers they were training. Having been caught several times lying to surviving family members the Army is now being forced to review its own reports.

How can our military families properly grieve their losses if neo-con leaders are allowed to dishonor the supreme sacrifice of their children with self-serving neoconservative lies?

2006-08-25 06:15:37 · 16 answers · asked by rcabrave 2 in Military

2006-08-25 06:14:37 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics

Some believe Bush is taking too many civil liberties away and some do not. What power do you believe a goverment should have and should not have, whilist still claiming to be a beacon of freedom and democracy and within the constitution and bill of rights?

2006-08-25 06:13:25 · 9 answers · asked by wicked_paul 2 in Politics

Who would you vote for president if they were candidates?

2006-08-25 06:13:19 · 17 answers · asked by Mr.Death 5 in Other - Politics & Government

Olmert support fades.Nearly two thirds of Israelis want Ehud Olmert to resign, an Israeli newspaper poll found today, a reflection of the widespread perception that Israel failed in its war against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.The poll, carried out by Yediot Aharanot, Israel's bestselling daily newspaper, found that 63 per cent of Israelis want the Prime Minister to step down.

Hez is a terrorist group, but their popularity is growing in that region, israeli cabinet is a democraticly elected government, who 4uked up big time in this war and their popularity is fading, do you folks see something is not right in this scenario????

2006-08-25 06:12:44 · 5 answers · asked by Captain W 2 in Other - Politics & Government

i feel this is the most powerful political slogan by karl marx in communist manifesto. do you agree with me. please suggest if you have more power ful slogan than this which inspired downtrodden people.

2006-08-25 06:10:24 · 7 answers · asked by evelyn 3 in Politics

I'm guessing 90% of women that come to Europe come to get ******. what's up with that. take in mind that Viagra is an American medicine

2006-08-25 06:09:04 · 13 answers · asked by tsar 2 in Politics

A female PFC is raped in the military by her superior officer and offered as a pass-around-screw to other officers. Now this raped PFC has PTSD, won't turned the tv off at night, and her grandmother died and left her a picture of the person who originally raped her. How come VA won't give her disability? The doctors at VA says she's entitled, but they are making her go through a lot of hoopla and it has been 3 years since she applied. Anyone got any info that could help her? She's starting to freak out more.

2006-08-25 06:06:42 · 17 answers · asked by Anonymous in Military

How open borders turn
Americans into roadkill
Illegals drive up highway deaths as U.S. hits
new highs for unlicensed, uninsured motorists

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: August 25, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern



© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com


Vitalina Bautista Vargas bids farewell to husband in court (courtesy Chattanooga Times Free Press)
WASHINGTON – Marcos Ramos Medina was driving his 1997 Chevrolet Lumina erratically, according to witnesses, swerving several times across the center line, causing a tractor-trailer rig to jackknife in Yakima, Wash., Aug. 4, 2005.

That was before his car plowed into the 2000 Lexus driven by Peggy Keller, 53, dean of distance education at Yakima Valley College, who was killed in the head-on crash.

Prosecutors in his vehicular homicide trial contended Medina was coming down from a methamphetamine high. When Russell T. "Todd" Sharpe, a six-year Washington State Patrol officer, testified that Medina fought against his restraints while being taken to the hospital for a blood alcohol test and refused to answer questions, the case against the Mexican national with a criminal record who had twice been deported was declared a mistrial because his constitutional right to remain silent had been violated.


"It pains me greatly, but in this case I must exercise an abundance of caution," explained Judge James P. Hutton.

Little caution, critics say, is being exercised when it comes to preventing mayhem on America's highways as the country witnesses record high numbers of unlicensed, unregistered, uninsured drivers – millions of whom are illegal aliens like Medina.

While no one – in or out of government – tracks traffic accidents caused by illegal aliens, the statistical and anecdotal evidence suggests many of last year's 42,636 road deaths involved illegal aliens.

A report by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Study found 20 percent of fatal accidents involve at least one driver who lacks a valid license. In California, another study showed that those who have never held a valid license are about five times more likely to be involved in a fatal road accident than licensed drivers.

Statistically, that makes them an even greater danger on the road than drivers whose licenses have been suspended or revoked – and nearly as dangerous as drunk drivers.

While police do not routinely ask drivers about their immigration status, New York's Rockland County District Attorney Michael Bongiorno – who has prosecuted more than 20 felony cases this year involving people accused of both unlicensed driving and drunken driving – estimated that two-thirds of about 70 drivers charged in Spring Valley with misdemeanor counts of driving while intoxicated and unlicensed driving were illegal immigrants.

"Unfortunately, the undocumented drivers here do that (drive unlicensed) more than the natives,'' said California Highway Patrol Officer Wendy Hahn. "If they've been involved in an incident, they flee because they don't want to deal with immigration.''

Federal immigration officials typically do not get involved when an undocumented person is charged with drunken driving or driving without a license, said Bongiorno and police officials around the country.

While the Census Bureau estimates there are 9 million illegal aliens living in the U.S., other sources put the figure closer to 20 million. Running parallel to those estimates are the best guesses on the number of unlicensed motorists – 17 million.

In addition, the states with the most illegal aliens also have the most unlicensed drivers. Those states are also in the lead for the most hit-and-run accidents, according to reports issued by the Fatality Analysis Reporting System and the Pew Hispanic Center. California ranks at the top with 24.1 percent of the known 11.1 million illegal aliens.

The proportion of unlicensed drivers varies widely state-by-state, with 6 percent in Maine and 23 percent in New Mexico.

Many of those advocating allowing illegal aliens to get driver's licenses make the case by suggesting most unlicensed drivers are so because they cannot get a license.

In California, for instance, the Legislature is considering several proposals that would help illegal immigrants drive. One of them is a bill that would prevent police from seizing vehicles driven by unlicensed drivers. Senate Bill 626 by Sen. Nell Soto, D-Ontario, would apply to all drivers who have never obtained a California license. Opponents point out those favoring the bill are the same people promoting licenses for illegals.

'Under current state law, police can seize vehicles for up to 30 days if the driver is unlicensed. Under the new bill, if the driver never had a license, the vehicle could be seized for only 24 hours; those who had licenses suspended or revoked would still have the vehicles impounded for up to 30 days.

Who are the people who have never had a license? Disproportionately, critics of the bill say, they are illegal immigrants.

In the Maryland Legislature, Delegate Luiz R.S. Simmons, D-Montgomery, is drafting legislation that would stiffen penalties for unlicensed drivers. His bill requires them to appear before a judge and would make them subject to up to 90 days in jail for a first offense and as much as a year for a second offense. In addition, cars belonging to unlicensed drivers could be impounded for up to a month or forfeited if they were involved in an accident that caused an injury.

Though there is absolutely no government data on the identity of Maryland's unlicensed drivers – or those in any other state – Simmons's bill has been attacked by immigrant rights' activists, who say it targets Latinos.

Whether they are mostly illegal aliens or not, one thing is certain – there are more unlicensed drivers on the road than ever before. So prevalent is the trend that many police departments have cut back on sobriety checkpoints in favor of checkpoints to check the documentation of drivers.

A WND statistical study of police reports of dozens of such checkpoints around the country show that close to 10 percent of drivers stopped are either unlicensed or have suspended licenses. Even at sobriety checkpoints, far more drivers are found to be unlicensed than intoxicated.

While some say the answer to the illegal alien-unlicensed driver crisis is permitting illegals to get licensed, others say the solution is decreasing the number of illegal immigrants living in the United States.

Rules determining who is eligible for a driver's license vary by state. Eleven states do not require legal immigration status to obtain a license. The rest do require proof of legal status, either by state law or the documents required to apply. The eleven states are: Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin. Tennessee and Utah have introduced a separate "certificate for driving" for state residents who cannot prove they are lawfully present in the United States. But Tennessee stopped issuing the certificates in February after reports that undocumented immigrants were coming from out of state and using false documents to apply.

The Real ID act, scheduled to take effect in 2008, will prohibit all states from issuing licenses to illegal aliens or the licenses will not be accepted as identification for federal purposes.

In addition to being unlicensed, most illegal alien drivers are uninsured – making the accidents they cause even more injurious. Statewide, more than one-third of California drivers are without insurance, according to the California Department of Insurance. In some low-income and minority neighborhoods, the rate is over 50 percent. In San Jose, for instance, 55 percent of all drivers on the road have no auto insurance. In some parts of Los Angeles, Imperial, San Diego and Alameda counties, the rate reaches as high as 90 percent.

The situation isn't much better in other states with high populations of illegals. In Texas, 27 percent of drivers are uninsured. In Florida, the estimates are between 15 and 25 percent. In Colorado, 32 percent.

Even though citizens and legal residents are victimized by the high percentage of uninsured drivers, illegal aliens themselves are often immune to the pain.

Take the case of Victor Manuel Caballero. Even though he entered the country illegally from Mexico five years ago, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that he could collect damages for being hurt in an auto accident from a special state fund set up to benefit those hurt in accidents with uninsured drivers.

Caballero would hitch a ride to his computer job with a co-worker, 19-year-old Ricardo Martinez. One morning, Martinez fell asleep at the wheel, veered off the road and struck a parked tractor trailer. Martinez walked away from the accident, but Caballero was badly hurt.

Surgeons repaired injuries to his abdomen and intestines over a week in the hospital at a cost of $38,300 in medical bills and $1,482 in lost wages. He had no medical insurance. The driver, Martinez was not only unregistered, he had no auto insurance. It turns out he was illegal, too.

The $38,300 in hospital bills was paid by a special hospital charity fund. And because of his successful lawsuit that went all the way to the state Supreme Court, Caballero was eligible for up to $15,000 for "pain and suffering."

There are no official statistics about highway carnage and illegal aliens. But there is an increasing awareness among law enforcement officials – and victims of traffic accidents – that illegal aliens are playing a disproportionate role in the road mayhem.

Earlier this month, a court in Chattanooga, Tenn., heard the case of an illegal alien convicted of running her car into a house and killing a 91-year-old woman. A judge ordered Vitalina Bautista Vargas deported. Amazingly, the family of the victim remained compassionate and merciful.

"They wanted one of the conditions to be that she learn how to drive," prosecutor Jay Wood said.

Prosecutor Wood said federal officials insisted that she be deported. He said as a convicted felon, she will not be allowed to apply to re-enter the country for at least 10 years.

Louella Winton, the victim, was asleep in her bed when the car crashed into her house. The vehicle knocked the victim through the bedroom wall and threw her against the wall of the house next door.

2006-08-25 06:06:24 · 14 answers · asked by Anonymous in Immigration

according to some law editors,what is equality before the law.

2006-08-25 06:05:18 · 6 answers · asked by Prince A 1 in Law & Ethics

Will they start buying burkhas? Will they retreat and embolden the enemy like Clinton did in Somalia only to insure that the USA will get nuked by the Islamofascists?

2006-08-25 06:05:00 · 20 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics

2006-08-25 06:04:49 · 17 answers · asked by W E J 4 in Politics

2006-08-25 06:04:34 · 9 answers · asked by position28 4 in Other - Politics & Government

If so please look at the following debunking the liberal propaganda.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/defense/1227842.html?page=1&c=y

2006-08-25 06:04:31 · 7 answers · asked by fire_side_2003 5 in Other - Politics & Government

2006-08-25 06:04:25 · 18 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics

There was a posting the other day about well to do Mexicans paying to make the journey that illegals make, like a tourist attraction. What if we did the same thing, charged wealthy Americans to live a day in the life of an illegal. Picking fruit, cleaning toilets, standing on the corner drinking the beast beer, riding in the back of a truck at 70 mph down the freeway in the rain. All the stuff that people claim americans dont want to do would get done by americans. No more jobs for illegals.

2006-08-25 06:04:23 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Immigration

2006-08-25 06:03:02 · 4 answers · asked by igloopigloo 1 in Government

for my grass going yelloe from the lack of rain?

2006-08-25 06:02:41 · 36 answers · asked by W E J 4 in Politics

2006-08-25 06:02:05 · 14 answers · asked by W E J 4 in Politics

2006-08-25 06:00:44 · 25 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics

2006-08-25 05:58:45 · 21 answers · asked by Work In Progress 3 in Politics

or is coragryph?

2006-08-25 05:58:30 · 9 answers · asked by W E J 4 in Politics

If our troops or other government agency were stealing Iraq's oil, don't you think the media would enjoy reporting about it? Don't you think the government officals would be caught stealing the oil? Why hasn't the NY Times (or other liberal media outlet) reported a story about having some type of evidence that it was stolen? The president could be impeached if they had some type of proof to back it up with. If you hate the president so much, why hasn't he been embarressed about being caught stealing the oil? And finally, assuming all of you are right and it is about the oil, then why are gas prices still high? I'm not going to put you down because of your beliefs but just want to understand how you feel. Some member of the GOP senate were trying hard to bring Pres. Clinton down out of office because of his scandel and if the democratic party had any evidence they would love to bring Bush down in the same fashion. So if you are right, why is Bush still in power? Thanks for answering me.

2006-08-25 05:58:04 · 12 answers · asked by osunumberonefan 5 in Politics

2006-08-25 05:57:51 · 4 answers · asked by MARIETTE B 1 in Other - Politics & Government