Letter to the Editor: On Arrest and Deportation
Deportation of undocumented persons who have been here for a period of time seemingly may not affect the security of the United States, but the agency in charge of enforcement of deportations was established to meet the security needs of our country and it seems the powers to be felt our immigration policies do affect the security of the U.S.
The President amended the policy regarding deportations last March, but the amended policy hasn’t kicked in, or so it seems. What may skew our view may be that the statistics for the latest fiscal year include only six months since the President and his Secretary of Homeland Security declared the “new policy,” even less since the Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued his amended policy. Also, the President, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security land the Director of (ICE) have openly declared that the new policy should not be viewed as permission to remain in the United States in violation of its law. Sufficient time for the policy to be put into effect and a proper budget implementing the policy to fully be effective should be allowed. But in the meantime, ICE has announced its intention to deport 400,000 criminals and undocumented persons from the country this fiscal year. Close to this number were deported last year. ICE indicated that 55% of the deportees last year were criminals. Ice seems to place arrest as equal to criminal conviction. That means over 45% of the deportees during the last fiscal year were not guilty of a crime. CAUSA, an activist group, estimates 28% of the undocumented persons deported during the last fiscal year were not guilty of any criminal activity and did not have a criminal record. This agency further avers that a full 79% of those undocumented persons deported were at the most guilty of only minor infractions such as traffic violations. The remaining 21% were criminals falling under the new guidelines for deportation of having been convicted of a felony or convicted of two misdemeanors. We should note, arrests are not convictions, but it appears the administration is considering them as such. Why must we wait for the Federal Government to correct its bungling while people in our communities suffer?
In order to perform its function ICE maintains a Law Enforcement Support Center which processed over one million information requests for information pertaining to customs matters or aliens from courts and other law enforcement agencies during the past fiscal year. The center maintains over 100 million records. Its communication center is capable of confirming data within 10 minutes of the inquiry. The system operates in conjunction with the National Instant Criminal Background Check System operated by the Department of Justice’s Federal Bureau of Investigation by screening the immigration status of foreign-born non citizens. The center also provides training assistance to other law enforcement personnel.
In reviewing the international news, it appears that people have migrated throughout the world long before the recent economic downturn. In many instances these people were welcomed into their new surroundings. Many melted into their new surroundings well. But, now that times are difficult, governments are seeking solutions as to what they should do with them. Stopping new migrants at the border or before, seems to be a universal solution. But, for those who have been in the locality for some time the solution does not seem as easy as the conditions and problems are varied and not universal, Migration is a local dilemma found in localities here and worldwide. Localities and their national governments struggle with a problem that is difficult to fix because no one really cared whether or not the immigrant was “legal” in good economic times. However, today the struggle creates discomfort not only to the migrants and their families, but also those in the community who are not related.
In the United States, we have taken a tact of deportation to the extent we have removed over a million aliens in the past few years. The statutes seem to deal with the problem in the same manner we deal with most civil incidents. However, our administration of the statutes seem to be conducted in the same fascist manner we claim to despise. In instances we suspect an undocumented person of a crime appropriate to criminal proceedings we act accordingly applying our laws. In instances where it is seemingly to our advantage we move these persons into our civil procedure of deportation without formally prosecuting them for their criminal activity. In many instances these persons are guilty of criminal activity, but are given a “break.”
In other instances an undocumented person is guilty only of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The person set up for deportation for being an undocumented person was stopped by the police for whatever reason, and arrested for whatever reason which can range from they were overly nervous, or they gave the officer an inconsequential reason to suspect they had committed a crime. They do not always know their rights and cooperated with the arresting authority offering information as to their birthplace when asked. Having no immigration information on them ICE may place a detainer on them and request their removal to an ICE facility maybe several hundred miles from their home. No one who knows them knows what happened to them. The first indication may be a telephone call several days later advising they are leaving the country. Those who have family or friends may be more fortunate if a family member or friend makes local inquiry immediately after their disappearance and has the financial resources and personal knowledge to enable them to pursue legal help some distance from home. Ice does maintain detainee locator offices. The nearest facilities to Lincoln County are in Seattle, Salt Lake City or San Francisco. Other ICE facilities are scattered in a like manner. An undocumented person arrested for the most minor reason without specific knowledge as to what is going on is like a person lost in a forest.
I am concerned for a very selfish reason. To me, the present administrative procedures applied to most undocumented persons appear to be unusually harsh for the type of civil violation. They are applied to hard working members of my community, not someone crawling out of a cave in the hills. I fear my government will treat me in the same manner if the people in power think they can get away with it. Intimidate, isolate and incarcerate for the minimal reason if I protest their actions. If you think I’m overly concerned, look around you as to what is happening. Most “terrorists” die or are arrested at a place they have a legal right to be. Most people are easy prey for those who have the knowhow and ability to separate them from their environment with or without a just cause. Is what is happening to many of my neighbors fair, correct or in accordance with human rights and justice?
