In what is billed as the largest bust in western North Carolina, ICE took into custody 59 illegal aliens who making parachutes for the U.S. armed forces at the Mills Manufacturing Corp. in Woodfin, North Carolina. A related ICE press release suggests the enforcement action neutralized a potential national security vulnerability.
Yavapai County, Arizona deputies arrested 31 illegal aliens within two days in an area highly trafficked by human smugglers on Interstate 17, a Phoenix ABC affiliate reports. In one encounter, deputies pulled over a van that appeared to be overloaded. It was carrying 15 passengers who ICE confirmed as being illegally present after conducting phone interviews.Similar traffic stops yielded the arrests of six illegal aliens in one vehicle, and ten in another, after ICE verified the occupants were in the county illegally.
Last May, ICE agents descended on the quiet town of Postville, Iowa, swooping up 390 people at the Agriprocessors, Inc. slaughterhouse in the largest immigration raid in U.S. history. Months later, we find ourselves in the middle of a blame game in which the big picture has been obscured. The employers blame the illegal aliens for deceit and falsifying documents. The illegal aliens blame “necessity,” possibly interpreted as blaming their home governments for neglecting their countrymen. Agriprocessors, Inc. is receiving blame for egregious working conditions and abuse. Open border advocates blame the government for not enacting “comprehensive” reform. And now, three members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus blame the ICE for hard-handed tactics and the Justice Department for ignoring due process.
In an ICE blog posted on July 29, Immigration and Customs Enforcement Assistant Secretary Julie Myers discussed a recent enforcement case that is emblematic of the activities that unscrupulous businesses engage in to gain unfair advantage - domestic off-shoring. This practice involves building a business around the importation and employment of illegal aliens in an effort to avoid paying higher wages to, and taxes for, American workers.
ICE yesterday announced the introduction of a self-deportation pilot program for fugitive aliens called "Operation Scheduled Departure." Fugitive aliens are illegal aliens who are under court order to leave the United States but took flight after being released on their own recognizance. The Washington Post reports the program will give these absconders 90 days to put their affairs in order and in some cases leave with some family members. By turning themselves in, they will avoid the risk of being caught and jailed.
A Virginia law took effect this month which requires local jails to contact ICE to check the immigration status of all foreign-born inmates, irrespective of whether they are in the country legally. While the law hasn’t received as much attention as the 287(g)-related illegal alien crackdown in Prince William County, Va., it will benefit other jurisdictions seeking to identify and deport illegal alien inmates. The law may not have the force multiplier effect that results from Prince William’s policy, however.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials last week said illegal alien deportations from Washington, Oregon and Alaska have increased almost 40 percent over last year, according to the Associated Press. 7,345 illegal aliens were deported during the first nine months of the fiscal year, up from 5,256 for the same period last year. ICE officials said the increase is partially due to an expansion of the Criminal Alien Program, which enables federal, state and local officials to work together to identify illegal aliens with criminal records and deport them.
"An injured worker who previously received workers' compensation benefits could be denied additional benefits after a state agency discovered that he was an illegal alien, New York's highest court has ruled...." http://www.lawyersweeklyusa.com/index.cfm/archive/view/id/431173
LawyersUSA
Nineteen former Pilgrim's Pride workers have pleaded guilty to misusing Social Security numbers in order to gain employment at a Texas plant. These convictions stem from the April ICE raids of Pilgrim's Pride facilities in five states. These individuals, all illegal aliens of Latin American origin, have been handed over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for possible deportation. The April ICE raids were the culmination of a year-long investigation by ICE into the fraudulent use of Social Security numbers.
Forty-five illegal workers were arrested by federal agents in the largest immigration bust that Maryland has seen in recent years. 16 homes in Anne Arundel County were raided early on June 30th. Illegal workers for Annapolis Painting Services were allegedly coerced into renting the apartments in exchange for one-third of their monthly wages. The owner of the company, Robert Bontempo, has not yet been charged with any crime, but the company has been accused of providing workers with false Social Security numbers.
"Immigration authorities have detained at least 170 workers during a raid of a Houston used clothing company suspected of employing undocumented workers...." http://www.kdbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=8554061
AP, 25 June 2008
"As William Jerry Hadden's attorneys see it, the federal government is singling out their client to send a message to landlords: Don't rent to illegal immigrants.
Hadden, 69, goes on trial Monday on 24 counts of harboring illegal aliens and 24 counts of encouraging illegal immigrants to remain in the country. Hadden and his son, Jamey, who is in Vietnam, rented to 60 undocumented immigrants at the Woodridge and Cross Keys apartments in Lexington's Cardinal Valley...."
"In the aftermath of McCain's closed-door visit with more than 100 Hispanic leaders on Wednesday--sandwiched into a fundraising visit by the Republican contender--a conservative anti-illegal immigration activist who attended the meeting contended McCain was offering conservatives one view of immigration reform while telling Latinos another.
'I told Myers and Chertoff about the problems, and they said they have everything (under control), that everything was OK,' Menendez said. 'They're obviously in total denial.' …
'We have the equivalent of a shoot-first-and-ask-questions-later policy,' he said. 'That can't possibly be the law.' http://www.northjersey.com/news/nationalpolitics/19880064.html
By Elizabeth Llorente -- The Herald News (Passaic County, NJ)
"After the biggest immigration raid in U.S. history, hundreds of workers have been sentenced but not one company official as yet faces any charges - something critics say is typical of a federal government that is tough on employees but easy on owners. Worker advocates and lawmakers say the fact that nearly 400 workers were arrested in the May 12 raid at the Agriprocessors Inc.
"Senate Majority Leader Michael Gronstal of Council Bluffs said he plans to resume work in January on legislation aimed at preventing employers from hiring immigrant workers as independent contractors when they should be considered actual employees. He said he also supports sanctions on employers that knowingly hire undocumented workers. "We think the real cause of this problem isn't people who are trying to seek a better life for themselves and their family.
"The number of illegal immigrants arrested and deported from Oklahoma and North Texas is on pace to exceed last year's number by 40 percent, the Department of Homeland Security says...." http://www.star-telegram.com/448/story/672379.html
AP, 30 May 2008
"In March, Congressman Bill Sali (R-Idaho) sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urging her to hold off on approving the consulate until the government can assure Idahoans that a consulate will not foster the continued presence of illegal immigrants in the state. Sali, who earlier this month was recognized by the American Conservative Union as one of the "best and brightest" in the U.S.
"Work-site arrests of illegal immigrants have increased tenfold nationwide to nearly 5,000 last year, according to the federal government. Images of the raids have been splashed on television news reports and on the front pages of Spanish-language newspapers around the country...." http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-letters27-2008may27,0,7438900.story
Paloma Esquivel, Los Angeles Times, 27 May 2008
Last week, 270 illegal aliens who had been working at the Agriprocessors plant in Postville, Iowa, were convicted of working with false documentation. This is a marked change from previous immigration raids, where illegal workers were simply deported.
At least 100 immigration agents raided the Agriprocessing plant in Postville, Iowa, at around 10 am (cst) on Monday, May 12. Immigration officials told local authorities that 600-700 arrests were expected at the plant -- a facility that employees around 1,000 individuals.
The ICE raid was executed to look for evidence of suspected identity theft and fraudulent use of Social Security numbers, among other crimes. Immigration agents were also granted permission to investigate individuals suspected of being in the United States illegally.
At least 100 immigration agents raided the Agriprocessing plant in Postville, Iowa, at around 10 am (cst) on Monday, May 12. Immigration officials told local authorities that 600-700 arrests were expected at the plant -- a facility that employees around 1,000 individuals.
The ICE raid was executed to look for evidence of suspected identity theft and fraudlent use of Social Security numbers, among other crimes. Immigration agents were also granted permission to investigate individuals suspected of being in the United States illegally.
The American Legion has launched a nationwide education initiative to alert the nation to the dangers posed by unhampered illegal immigration and the government's unwillingness to address the issue.
The Legion is launching a coast-to-coast media campaign to explain the dangers of of illegal immigration. It will also offer a booklet, free to the public, which outlines the dangers and offers logical policy initiatives.
"For the first time since significant numbers of Latinos began arriving in Stillmore in the late 1990s, the plant's processing lines were made up predominantly of African-Americans..." http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07017/754517-28.stm
The Wall Street Journal via Pittsburgh Post Gazette; January 17, 2007
"'This issue is not new; this preference for immigrant workers over native African-American workers is historical,' said Frank Morris, a former associate dean at the University of Maryland, College Park. Morris was also president of the Tacoma branch of the NAACP during the 1960s..." http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003055714_latinosvblacks12m.html
The Seattle Times; June 12, 2006
"'The state of Oklahoma ought not be in the business of subsidizing the presence of people who are here illegally,' said Republican state Rep. Randy Terrill, sponsor of the Oklahoma Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act of 2007, also known as House Bill 1804. 'HB 1804 proves that attrition through enforcement works,' Terrill added..." http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-immigrant_bdfeb10,0,4213105.story
Chicago Tribune; February 10, 2008
"Arizona's month-old law punishing companies that knowingly hire undocumented workers is legal, a federal judge ruled Thursday..." http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/224165
Arizona Daliy Star; February 8, 2008
"A federal crackdown on illegal immigrants in the workplace has triggered a tsunami of work for immigration lawyers, who say fears of getting hit with an immigration raid or audit are at an all-time high among employers..." http://www.dailyreportonline.com/Editorial/News/singleEdit.asp?individual_SQL=2/8/2008@21162
Daily Report; February 8, 2008
