DO DCRP Officers Ignore Illegals?

[Fred Sanford]

It sure seems as though the obviously unlicensed/uninsured illegal aliens get a free pass in DC. Sheesh, I can pick 3 of them out between Sonic and Wright Park every time; they aren't that hard to spot. Why does DCPD ignore them?

[justme]

I know that local law enforcement does not ignore illegals when it comes to state and city laws. We continuously issue citations and make physical arrests for no insurance, no registration, and no licenses.

As far as being illegally in the United States we are powerless. It a federal violation and we cant enforce them unless we are given authority by a federal officer. We stop several loads of illegals a month, and in most cases when we contact either the INS or Border Patrol, we are told to try to get the destination from them and let them go. This is especially true if there are females or children in the group. When the border patrol does agree to take them, we have to then talk the sheriff in whatever county to take anywhere from 5-20 more people into their jail. Most counties do not have the capacity or resources to handle that kind of prisoner load, and if there are juveniles: forget it, counties are not going to foot the cost of housing juveniles in the juvenile detention facilities, along with the transportation problems.

Unless and until the federal government decides to enforce our current laws, the problems will continue.

It sucks, but thats the reality of our world in Kansas.

[TexKan]

Illegeals??? Ya oughta see them in Tx. I know that they are everywhere in DC - One of the burning questions I have is why is it the companies and business men that hire them are not "fronted out" I think much of this is supply and demand. It doesn't mean that the law should be ignored but on the other hand do we not as American's (business and otherwise) encourage the illegeality of it all? After the evacution from hell on I 45 - the 23.5 hours to get 90 miles hearing boom music in a language I don't speak and the "people" I saw on the highways that were non english speaking having picnics, leaving garbage and not keeping up with their 14 children, watering their pit bulls but not wiping their childrens faces .- I have decided to support The Minute Men. I'm tired of having people expecting me to speak spanish, I'm tired of having toilet paper piled in corners in public restrooms, I'm tired of having to be "sensitive" to people who choose to come here under the darkness of night and then suck our federal programs dry because they are subserviant to their culture and their men. Basically I'm pretty damn tired of it all. To be fair though I must state I do realize that there are "illegeals" that are in Iraq as we speak. One such kid was from Trinidad - he died while going to do finger prints for immigration - got hit by a mortar attack just last week. Sad thing is his fingerprints were with the FBI already - INS I guess doesn't talk to the FBI. So I think the issue is doccumented vs undoccumented. I applaude the folks that embrace American culture while keeping thier own rich heritage alive. I admire those that go thru the process of claiming this country as thier own and being patient enough to do it. I see them in my clinic daily - most have been here for 10 + years - the process is not cheap but they do it to better themselves. They don't come over, work, ship money back to Mexico then just wait to get caught to get a ride home. Not every non english speaking person is "illegeal" I think the key word is "doccumented". There is a big difference. I still believe the person with the best border solution for America will win the next presidential race. Folks are just too tired of being the "caregiver" country. Pardon my mis spellings I get carried away on this topic - LOL

[lowflight]

"I have decided to support The Minute Men."



This is the only way anything is going to get done. ironic that civilians have to do the goverments job....

[NoLongerInRadioGuy]

Originally Posted by Fred Sanford

It sure seems as though the obviously unlicensed/uninsured illegal aliens get a free pass in DC. Sheesh, I can pick 3 of them out between Sonic and Wright Park every time; they aren't that hard to spot. Why does DCPD ignore them?

Maybe you think "they" are not hard to spot...I assume you mean driving...so I will address it that way...

In order for us to stop someone, we need reasonable suspicion that a crime or infraction has been, is being, or is about to be committed. We can't just see someone who we believe is hispanic and pull them over because they might be illegally in the US. Sounds like you are suggesting us do some racial profiling?

We do what we can, and it doesnt matter what race they are. If they are unlicensed and do not have a state ID, they go to jail. What happens after that is not up to us as cops. We have done our job. As I think was posted earlier, an illegal alien getting caught with no DL will not rise high enough to get INS to send them back to whatever country they are from. Usually it takes at least a felony to get INS to do anything.

Also, can you tell me what a "Obviously unlicensed/uninsured" driver looks like? From my experience, unlicensed people sometimes drive better that licensed onces because they dont want to get caught. And I sure cant identify an uninsured driver without asking them for proof of insurance...

[Bubba]

It takes insurance to get a car registered and license plates issued. Why can't insurance companies be required to send law enforcement a list of cancelled insurance policies and addresses. Then the officer can do a drive by and see if the licensed car is still at that address, if so watch for it to be driven by increasing the amount of neighborhood patrolling. It moves and boom! Catch somebody for driving with no insurance. Might even bring insurance rates down by not having so many uninsured motorist claims.

[lurker]

The only real answer to insuring the motoring public against loss is to include an adequate amount of liability coverage in the price of fuel. Much like off-road fuel has a dye to differentiate it from taxed fuel. It can be argued that a driver with a poor record will pay the same for coverage as a driver with an exemplary record and I guess that's true; but the cost of "uninsured motorist" coverage is borne by the victim as it now stands and it is usually inadequate.

Pricing liability insurance relative to gasoline usage creates a fair and balanced exposure and cost function. The more you drive, the greater your exposure; therefore it costs you more.

What would it take for a fully insured vehicle to be able to use fuel without included liability coverage or otherwise differentiate levels of risk to the motoring public? Well, I don't know but I would suggest that there be an avenue of refunding those costs much like the trucking industry can acquire refunded taxes.

As it now stands, when you're hit by an uninsured motorist; you pay.


Edit: The onliest reason this won't work is because the insurance industry won't allow it.

[Mike B.]

First time here and have read alot of comments about illegals in our community. To anyone with the time and political pull to fix this problem please read on.

In most cases, federal laws that bar illegal aliens from the United States and punish persons who smuggle, shelter, or employ or othewise assist illegal aliens can be enforced by local and state police.

State and local law enforcement officials have the general power to investigate and arrest violators of federal immigration statutes without prior Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) knowledge or approval, as long as they are authorized to enforce federal law in general. Although immigration is a federal matter, local law enforcement departments and personnel are not required to turn a blind eye to any illegal activity - including violations of immigration laws. It is illegal for local governments to prohibit police cooperation with the INS, and individual officers who report violations are protected by law.

Although the Immigration and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRAIRA) of 1996 provided new authority for empowering local law enforcement agencies to enforce immigration law provisions against aliens illegally in the country, local police were never powerless to act on immigration law violations before adoption of that legislation. Local police departments have always had the ability to collaborate with the INS in enforcement operations. An example was local cooperation with the INS and the FBI in locating and interviewing foreign students from Middle Eastern countries following the September 11 terror attacks.

In addition, Section 274(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) as amended in 1986, authorizes "...all other officers whose duty it is to enforce criminal laws," to arrest persons for smuggling, harboring or transporting illegal aliens. Futhermore, federal courts had repeatedly affirmed since 1984 that local police may inquire into immigration violations in the course of a routine stop (see e.g., U.S. v. Salinas-Caldron).

In 1996, Congress made several express grants of immigration law enforcement authority to state and local governments. The most important of the legislative actions was contained in IIRARA section 133, which authorizes the U.S. Attorney General (AG) to enter into written cooperative agreements with state and local governments to accept the services of state officers or employees in enforcing the INA. Under a "Section 133" agreement,state and local governments may designate officers or employees ("local officers") who will be authorized to "perform a function of [a federal] immigration officer in relation to the investigation, apprehension, or detention of aliens in the United States."

Upon approval of the cooperative agreement by the AG, the designated local officer becomes a limited federal immigration official. The designated local officer is subject to the "direction and supervision of the AG" while performing the immigration enforcement function and, if the written agreement so specifies, may use federal property and facilities to accomplish that function. While Section 133 emphasizes that the designated officer is not a federal employee, agreements created under this section may grant local officers all the powers exercised by federal immigration officers and provide that the designated local officer will enjoy federal immunity. However, the local officer must carry out their immigration functions at the expense of the state or local government.

This may have been long and boring to some of you but, it is a start on fixing the problems of illegal aliens in Dodge. The main problem in implimenting a pogram in Dodge would be attianing money and personnel from the city and/or county. I really doubt that our city fathers see illegal immigration as a problem. Therefore, if anyone dare tackle the job, most likely they would be dismissed as a lunatic.

I posted this some time ago on the dodgeglobe site. Just thought if you did not read it there you might find this interesting.

Mike B.

[Mike B.]

Oh, I almost forgot.

The Question was, "Why does the DCPD ignore them?"

The answer is, "No money and no-one cares enough or has the time to really dig in and get it done."

Mike B.

[lurker]

This town, county and state has an IV fed in part by a "retail sales tax" and anyone spending money is funding their bureaucracies. Additionally, anyone using some of their "services" (translate: handouts) is a client whose very presence justifies their existence. What costs is jail housing without any hope of receiving fines; such as INS/illegal alien detainees.

We used to have a nice law about vagrancy that was used to protect the public from low-grade offenders and other un-desirables until they could be taken to the county line or dumped on a bus...

but it became politically en-sense-ative.