This is article 256 of 256 in the topic Immigration
The residents of so-called sanctuary cities in California witnessed the trials of two illegal aliens who viciously murdered several victims in separate incidents, a law enforcement source in California told the Law Enforcement Examiner on Friday.
Young Jamiel Shaw was murdered in cold-blood by an illegal alien who should have been deported according to U.S. immigration law. Photo credit: Police One Magazine
In two unrelated cases that illustrate the high price communities pay for sanctuary policies, two illegal aliens — both with extensive criminal records — were convicted of first-degree murder by juries this week in different parts of a border state that’s actually prided itself on protecting illegal aliens, according to a legal watchdog group that investigates and exposes government corruption and criminal activity perpetrated by government officials.
In one case –in the what some call “The Mother of All Sanctuary Cities” – a San Francisco a jury found Edwin Ramos, a renowned gang banger, guilty of three first-degree murder counts for the 2008 killings of a 48-year-old man and his two sons. Ramos had a lengthy criminal record at the time he murdered the family, but San Francisco sanctuary laws shielded him from deportation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
“While President Barack Obama and his Attorney General Eric Holder harass and sue states and law enforcement agencies that enforce immigration law, they have failed to go after any city officials who refuse to comply with federal immigration laws such as notifying ICE agents regarding criminal aliens,” said former NYPD detective and military intelligence officer Sidney Franes.
Judicial Watch obtained public records that revealed the San Francisco police knew Ramos was an active member of the notoriously violent MS-13 street gang and that he had numerous run-ins with police officers, including arrests for weapons and gang-related charges.
Furthermore, police knew Ramos was in the U.S. illegally yet released him after every encounter. In short, the records obtained by JW prove that don’t-ask, don’t-tellsanctuary policies protect illegal alien gang bangers and put American citizens at risk.
The famously leftist northern California city has long protected illegal immigrants and offered them costly public services that should be reserved for legal residents and citizens, according to Judicial Watch’s Corruption Chronicles.
In fact, illegal aliens are assured through costly, Spanish-language advertisement campaigns that they will never be reported to federal law enforcement agents such as ICE, the HSI (Homeland Security Investigations), the U.S. Border Patrol or other agency that could initiate the deportation process.
San Francisco was officially proclaimed an illegal alien sanctuary city by its board of supervisors in 1989 and now lawmakers are taking it a huge step further by creating legislation to grant illegal aliens official city identification cards.
Criminal Alien Pedro Espinoza
Meanwhile, a few hundred miles south in Los Angeles, another illegal immigrant gang banger, Pedro Espinoza, was also convicted of first-degree murder this week for gunning down a standout high school football player in 2008. Jurors deliberated for about four hours before reaching a verdict, according to the JW web site.
According to Judicial Watch, ”Espinoza proudly sports a tattoo with the initials ‘B.K,’ which police say stands for Blood Killer.”
Espinoza had just completed a jail sentence for a previous felony when he murdered the 17-year-old star running back, Jamiel Shaw, as he walked home. The entire city of Los Angeles mourned the loss of the up-and-coming star athlete.
This is article 255 of 256 in the topic Immigration
How should Christians respond in the so-called illegal immigration debate? Gabriel Salguero, president of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition, opposes laws like SB 1070. In fact, he favors immigration reform, a euphemism for amnesty. “Hospitality is not at the margins of Scripture,” he said earlier this year at the G92 South Immigration Conference at Samford University. “Jesus wasn’t kidding around when He said, ‘I was a stranger and you welcomed me.’”
Scripture misapplication notwithstanding, Christians certainly are called to be compassionate, but are we called to welcome lawbreakers? In light of such questions, Professor James K. Hoffmeier, author of The Immigration Crisis: Immigrants, Aliens, and the Bible (Crossway, 2009), investigated what the Bible has to say about foreigners/strangers/visitors in a host country. The relevant terms he found are ger,zar, and nekhar. Zar and nekhar refer to people passing through, but only ger refers to foreigners who live in the land with the host’s permission.
“The law is clear that ger is not to be oppressed,” Hoffmeier wrote in an email interview with the Gospel Coalition, “but to receive equal justice, and have access to the social support system of ancient Israel. And there was a provision for religious inclusion, but they were also obligated to live in accordance with the laws just like the Israelites.”
Does the same apply to aliens who don’t have the host country’s permission? Hoffmeier says no: “From this I conclude that ger was viewed as a legal alien. The mistake of some well-meaning Christians is to apply the biblical laws for the ger to illegal aliens in America even though they do not fit the biblical legal and social definition.” Illegal aliens, by definition, are not obeying the host country’s laws.
That Christians are to treat illegal aliens humanely is beyond dispute. That Christians should support immigration reform or oppose deportation is very much in dispute. Rewarding unlawful behavior for some, while others are waiting in line to go through proper channels to remain in and become citizens of this great country, is indefensible.
To Christ-professing illegal aliens who might be reading this column, I pose a question: How do you reconcile your presence in the United States with your faith generally and Romans 13 specifically?
This is article 254 of 256 in the topic Immigration
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Friday implemented several changes to weaken their Secure Communities Program, an initiative that keeps American neighborhoods safe by identifying illegal and criminal immigrants in police custody who have been arrested and fingerprinted, according to House GOP lawmakers.
GOP lawmakers say that the President is drastically reducing enforcement of the nation's immigration laws. Photo credit: DHS/CBP
Among these changes, ICE will not take enforcement action against those charged with minor traffic violations if they have not been previously convicted of other crimes. This means that an illegal immigrant previously arrested for a serious crime, such as murder or rape, but not convicted would be cut loose under ICE’s new policy.
ICE also indicates that it could punish states and localities that are serious about the enforcement of federal immigration law by reviewing the number of illegal immigrants identified by Secure Communities in each jurisdiction and possibly taking action if the number is too high.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) blasted the changes made to Secure Communities by DHS and ICE officials and released a biting statement.
“The Obama administration’s decision to weaken Secure Communities proves that they are not interested in the enforcement of our immigration laws. Secure Communities is an important and effective immigration law enforcement program that identifies illegal and criminal immigrants in police custody. The program doesn’t ask race or ethnicity — it merely checks the legal status of each person arrested, fingerprinted, and booked in jail,” noted Rep. Smith.
“[T]his common sense program has fallen prey to the Obama administration and pro-illegal immigrant lobbying groups for one reason and one reason alone: Secure Communities works,” Smith claims.
“It’s outrageous that the Administration will now penalize local law enforcement agencies that identify too many illegal and criminal immigrants through Secure Communities. Why should they be punished for protecting their communities? It’s ironic that the Obama administration seeks to punish local law enforcement for doing their job while the Administration blatantly neglects their own responsibilities,” the lawmaker pointed out.
“The Administration’s changes to Secure Communities make our communities less safe and put American lives at risk. The Obama administration should put the interests of Americans first, not those of illegal and criminal immigrants,” Rep. Smith said.
“It’s clear that Obama’s sympathies are with the illegal aliens entering the U.S. He’s all but told U.S. immigration and border officials to stop enforcing the law. This is just another message from the Obama Administration to Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to not be too zealous in doing their jobs,” claims former New York City Detective Jeff Knudson.
This is article 253 of 256 in the topic Immigration
Sometimes you have to shake your head at the left’s complete and utter moral and intellectual bankruptcy. Here’s the description of this campaign:
Drop the I-Word is a public education campaign powered by immigrants and diverse communities across the country that value human dignity and are working to eradicate the dehumanizing slur “illegals” from everyday use and public discourse. The i-word opens the door to racial profiling and violence and prevents truthful, respectful debate on immigration. No human being is “illegal.”
Apparently the Left has decided, for all of us, since they are so, you know, intellectual, that the word illegal is now forbidden. I would have said illegal, but that would be, say it with me, RAAAAACIST! As I wrote last night, the Left wants to control the dialogue. And, in order to do that, they want to eliminate debate, and eliminating certain words, like illegal, makes it easier for them to obfuscate. When Liberals cannot argue, they try to intimidate, or censor, or change the conversation, this campaign against the I-word is all about that.
This is article 252 of 256 in the topic Immigration
The Obama economy — a “virtual fence” on the southern border:
The number of Mexican migrants to the United States dropped significantly while the number of those returning home increased, bringing net migration from Mexico to a statistical standstill, according to a report published Monday.
The shift over the last several years marks a significant change after four decades of historic immigration from Mexico, according to the report by the Pew Hispanic Center.
“The largest wave of immigration in history from a single country to the United States has come to a standstill,” the report says.
If this reversal continues, look for assorted Dems to finally show an interest in a taller, stronger border fence in order to prevent any more of their voters from leaving the US.
The number of Mexican immigrants living illegally in the U.S. has dropped significantly for the first time in decades, showing a dramatic shift as many illegal workers are moving back to Mexico from the U.S. because there are so few job opportunities.
The new analysis comes amid renewed debate over U.S. immigration policy as the Supreme Court hears arguments this week on Arizona’s tough immigration law.
Mexican immigrants make account for nearly 60 per cent of the illegal immigrant population in the U.S. and last year there were 6.1million in America. That number was down from its peak in 2007 when there were 7million confirmed in the U.S.
That drop was the biggest one in modern history, with the Pew Hispanic Center noting it was believed to only be surpassed in scale by losses in the Mexican-born U.S. population during the Great Depression.
Much of the drop in illegal immigrants is due to the persistently weak U.S. economy, which has shrunk construction and service-sector jobs attractive to Mexican workers following the housing bust.
In addition, increased deportations, heightened U.S. patrols and violence along the border also have played a role, as well as demographic changes, such as Mexico’s declining birth rate.
In all, the Mexican-born population in the U.S. last year – legal and illegal – fell to 12million, marking an end to an immigration boom dating back to the 1970s. The 2007 peak was 12.6million.
Christian Ballesteros has been at a shelter for immigrants in Matamoros, Mexico, across the border from Brownsville, Texas.
He pointed to stiffer U.S. penalties for repeat immigrant offenders as well as brutal criminal groups that control the Mexican side of the border as reasons for the immigration decline.
This is article 250 of 256 in the topic Immigration
An “Inside the Beltway” public-interest group that investigates government corruption reported on Friday that it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit — Judicial Watch v. Department of Homeland Security (No. 1:12-cv-00346) — against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for records related to President Barack Obama’s illegal alien uncle, Onyango Obama, who was arrested in August 2011 on drunken driving charges in Framingham, Massachusetts as first reported by the Law Enforcement Examiner.
On March 27, 2012, Onyango Obama admitted to the Framingham District Court that prosecutors had enough evidence to convict him. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials, meanwhile, indicated that the agency would continue deportation proceedings against Obama, as reported in the Boston Herald.
“Now that [Mr. Obama’s] criminal case has completed, ICE has communicated, in accordance with standard procedure, with his attorney regarding his removal pursuant to a previous final order by an immigration judge,” agency spokesman Brian P. Hale said.
Onyango Obama reportedly was first ordered out of the country in 1992 but refused to leave.
After Onyango Obama was released from federal custody at the Plymouth County House of Correction on September 8, 2011, via an “order of supervision,” JW filed a second FOIA request, seeking access to “all records of communications, contacts and correspondence” between ICE and the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Department,” as well as the other organizations listed in the previous FOIA request.
By letter dated September 20, 2011, ICE acknowledged both FOIA requests. A response was due by October 19, 2011. However, after six months, DHS has failed to turn over any records, explain why they should be withheld, or indicate when a response will be forthcoming.
Obama, who, upon his arrest, said his one phone call would be to the White House, has indicated that he will fight ICE’s efforts to deport him in a high profile proceeding that the Boston Herald conjectured could “drag on for years.”
While he fights deportation, Obama will be allowed to drive a car. He was supposed to lose his license for 45 days, but received a “hardship license,” from the Massachusetts’s Department of Motor Vehicles so that he could drive back and forth to his job at a liquor store. (Typically, illegal aliens cannot lawfully work in the United States.)
“Onyango Obama has already escaped deportation once. And given his family relationship to President Obama, the American people must be assured that the law is being impartially followed in this case. The Obama administration’s decision to flout FOIA and stonewall our records request suggests that there is something to hide,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.
Special thanks to Judicial Watch’s Jill Farrell, director of public affairs, for her continued assistance and valuable information.
This is article 249 of 256 in the topic Immigration
President Obama made a lot of promises to a lot of people regarding Mexican illegal aliens. Photo credit: WH Press Office
President Barack Obama’s administration appointees at theU.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services this week revealed their plans to move forward with the rulemaking process to allow illegal alien spouses and children with U.S. citizen relatives to stay in the United States while the federal government decides on their waiver request, according to the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on the Judiciary.
Ironically, two of Obama’s relatives – an aunt and an uncle who was arrested for drunk driving — are currently in the United States illegally.
Under current U.S. immigration law, illegal aliens must leave the country before they can ask the federal government to waive the three and 10 year bars on legally coming back to the United States.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) released a statement criticizing Obama’s proposed change without the approval of Congress.
“President Obama is bending long established immigration laws to grant backdoor amnesty to potentially millions of illegal immigrants. Congress has defeated amnesty attempts several times in recent years. According to a recentpoll, two-thirds of Americans want to see immigration laws enforced, not ignored. Once again, President Obama is rewarding law breakers and disrespecting the rule of law,” stated Chairman Smith.
The U.S. Congress instituted the three and 10 year bars during the Clinton Administration in 1996 to provide a penalty for immigrants who had been illegally present in the U.S. for long periods of time. Although the waiver of these bars is legal under current law, it is not intended to be applied to millions of illegal immigrants, according to Rep. Smith.
Political strategist and attorney Michael Baker believes Obama and his immigration appointees are pushing their agenda “full speed ahead while members of Congress appear unwilling to try to stop his bending U.S. laws regarding illegal alien lawbreakers.”
According to Baker, beginning in late April, the Homeland Security Department will suspend all non-detained dockets for illegal immigrants in four additional jurisdictions, as it previously did in Baltimore and Denver, for two weeks. These jurisdictions include Detroit, New Orleans, Orlando, and Seattle.
In May, DHS will partially suspend the non-detained docket in New York City and then in July, it will implement the same procedures in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
This means that DHS intends to solely focus on detained cases in these jurisdictions, meaning those who come to the attention of law enforcement, claims Rep. Lamar Smith.
But if the illegal or criminal immigrant bonds out of jail, they can be put on the non-detained docket and could potentially remain in the U.S. This decision is just another part of the Obama administration’s plan to grant administrative amnesty to potentially millions of illegal immigrants, Smith stated.
“The Obama administration’s decision to expand itsbackdoor amnesty plan to cities across the United States endangers Americans and insults law enforcement officials,” noted Smith in his statement.
“The Obama administration’s refusal to enforce immigration law encourages more illegal immigration and rewards those who have broken our laws by allowing them to remain here and apply for work authorization. And the Department of Homeland Security could let some criminal illegal immigrants, such as those charged with drunk driving, stay in the U.S.,” Smith said.
This is article 248 of 256 in the topic Immigration
Illegal aliens captured by ICE agents are entitled to a comprehensive health care program. Photo credit: DHS/ICE
If a Mexican national wishes access to a full array of healthcare services, all they need do is cross the border into the United States and make certain they’re captured by agents from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE).
Providing quality healthcare to illegal aliens who are in ICE’s custody is an important and challenging task — one that Assistant Director for ICE Health Service Corps (IHSC) Dr. Jon Krohmer claims is taken very seriously, officials at the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on Tuesday.
The ICE Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) ensures the safe and humane conditions of confinement for aliens detained in ICE custody. This includes the provision of reliable, consistent and appropriate health services.
IHSC, which falls under ERO, is comprised of more than 900 Public Health Service-commissioned officers, federal civil servants and contract support staff. Their mission is straightforward: to serve as the medical authority for ICE on a wide range of medical issues, including the agency’s comprehensive detainee health care program, according to DHS officials.
However, at this point only estimated costs for this healthcare program are available and vary between $50 million and $150 million per year.
ICE Health Service Corps (IHSC) provides direct care to approximately 15,000 detainees housed at 21 IHSC-designated facilities throughout the nation. In addition, IHSC oversees the medical care provided to an additional 17,000 detainees at non-IHSC staffed detention facilities across the country. Whenever necessary, it authorizes and pays for off-site specialty and emergency care, consultations and case management, according to ICE.
“A detainee’s health care begins the moment they walk through the facility’s doors,” said Dr. Krohmer. “Within the first 12 hours of their admission, all detainees undergo a preliminary health screening, which includes an evaluation of the individual’s medical, dental and mental health status and within the next 14 days, a more detailed physical examination takes place.”
Because so many of these detainees are either new arrivals in the country or haven’t had access to health care in the past, Dr. Krohmer said it is not unusual for serious health problems to be diagnosed at these screenings.
“We’re finding out about health issues that even they didn’t even know about and in most cases are able to begin treatment,” he said.
However, some observers find Dr. Krohmer’s findings disturbing.
“I’m more concerned with illegal aliens who may enter the U.S. carrying a serious — even deadly — disease that may be highly contagious. Why don’t IHSC physicians and medical staff concentrate on screening immigrants coming from nations that may have serious health problems?” asks former NYPD police officer and emergency medical technician Nick D’Amato.
The continuity of care not only lasts during the individual’s period of detention, but also throughout their removal to their country of origin. Before any detainee boards a plane to be removed from the United States, they must first undergo an evaluation to make sure they are fit to fly, according to officials.
In order to continually upgrade the quality of medical services they deliver, IHSC not only actively complies with the Performance Based National Detention Standards, but is also instrumental in the standard’s continuous upgrades and improvements.
This is article 247 of 256 in the topic Immigration
ICE and Border Patrol agents have complained repeatedly regarding the Obama Administration's immigration policies. Credits: DHS/ICE
A number of representatives from watchdog groups, government agencies and the U.S. Congress are intensifying their criticism of the Obama Administration’s handling of illegal immigration and the Department of Homeland Security’s shortcomings in policing the immigration and visa system.
For example, the successful and well-known “Inside the Beltway” watchdog group — that’s respected by those who seek justice and feared by those involved in political or government corruption – posted a special April 1 blog entry alleging another Obama Administration failure involving the U.S.’s out-of-control visitorsvisa system.
According to Judicial Watch’s Corruption Chronicles, the Department of Homeland Security only takes action against a “small portion” of foreigners who overstay their visa — like several of the 9/11 terrorists — and allows hundreds of thousands to enter the United States without proper authorization under a provision that already relaxes scrutiny for dozens of countries.
When investigators from the Government Accountability Office demanded answers from the DHS, officials there said they had not yet completed a review of the cases to determine the extent of the risk. It’s as if nothing has been learned from the 2001 terrorist attacks, when security was so lax that Middle Eastern extremists slipped right through to plan their plot from inside the country.
Outlined in an investigative congressional report, these lapses are of special concern. The first involves foreigners who enter the U.S. from 36 countries that have special visa waiver agreements with Uncle Sam. They still need authorization, though the system is more lax than a typical visa process. Foreigners must comply with a special DHS Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) that requires them to submit biographical information and answer eligibility questions before traveling.
While most of the visitors comply with the requirements, an estimated 2% don’t, according to the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress. That translates into 364,000 travelers a year, investigators found. Additionally, only half of the countries that have visa waiver agreements with the U.S. are fully compliant. The GAO points out in this latest report that it has published five previous reports addressing the same subject yet little has been done to improve security.
“It’s almost as if the monstrous agency created after the 2001 terrorist attacks to protect the nation is blowing off Congress. This theory appears to be supported by the DHS’s handling of visa overstays. If you recall, several of the 9/11 hijackers entered the U.S. with valid visas but simply never left. This should be an area of deep concern for the DHS, though it doesn’t appear to be,” said the JW blogger.
In the course of their probe, GAO investigators found that federal agencies only take action against a “small portion” of the estimated 4 to 5.5 million who overstay their visa. Why is that? Because the specialized Homeland Security unit charged with cracking down on visa violators has “competing priorities.”
As baffling as this may seem, it’s all in the report. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Counterterrorism and Criminal Exploitation Unit is too busy with other matters, though it has “expressed an intention to augment its overstay enforcement resources,” according to the GAO.
Visa overstays have been a problem for the government for some time, even before 9/11.
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An “Inside the Beltway” public-interest group that investigates government corruption reported on Friday that it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit — Judicial Watch v. Department of Homeland Security (No. 1:12-cv-00346) — against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for records related to President Barack Obama’s illegal alien uncle, Onyango Obama, who was 
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