Uncle Sam improperly hiding data on convicts

By law, illegal aliens convicted of heinous crimes -- rape, murder, child molestation -- are to be deported once they've served their jail terms. But lately, thousands of them have simply been let go. And Justice Department officials have refused to release a government database that could help journalists and others find them.

No one knows exactly how many of these criminals there are nationwide, but Cox Newspapers Washington Bureau journalists Eliot Jaspin and Julia Malone examined Georgia state prison records in 2002 and found numerous cases like that of convicted pedophile Miguel Angel Gordoba. He served a four-year sentence for molesting a 2-year-old girl in Alma, Ga., then disappeared following his release.

Federal officials are required by law to deport people like Cordoba when they are released from prison, but immigration officials are often nowhere to be found when the illegal felons walk away from jail.

Federal investigators say there are thousands of Miguel Angel Gordobas. As scary a prospect as that is, this story gets worse. Much worse.

Federal investigators say there are thousands of Miguel Angel Gordobas.

True enough! The front page article of today's Orange County Register (Calif.) titled "A culture of deadly silence," is about abused illegal immigrant women. The article focuses on an illegal murdered in Santa Ana, CA, by her "husband," one Miguel Angel Martinez, also an illegal immigrant. The murder took place in December 2003. Martinez, 30, and his brother, Jaime (who was living with the couple), 41, left the house after the murder and are believed to be back in Mexico.

Your post caught my eye because I had just finished reading about this particular "Miguel Angel."

Once an ILLEGAL immigrant has been caught and convicted of a crime we can easily track his crimes. (Crimes plural since apparently they are being released to do it over and over.)

But what about background checks for the President's "guest workers?" Only the source country can do the background checks. Take Mexico for example.

This Washington Times article brings into question that aspect of the President's guest worker program. Mexicorruption can't even process background checks for their matricula cards.

"Special Report: Changes in the cards," By Mary Shaffrey THE WASHINGTON TIMES

"FBI officials recently told a Senate committee the matricula cards pose a criminal and terrorist threat, and are easy to obtain through fraud and a lack of adequate security measures by the Mexican government."

So how will background checks for guest workers be done without the cooperation of the corrupt government of Mexico?

Here's what FBI testimony before Congress says about Mexicorruption.

"The U.S. Government has done an extensive amount of research on the Matricula Consular, to assess its viability as a reliable means of identification. The Department of Justice and the FBI have concluded that the Matricula Consular is not a reliable form of identification, due to the non-existence of any means of verifying the true identity of the card holder. The following are the primary problems with the Matricula Consular that allow criminals to fraudulently obtain the cards:"

"First, the Government of Mexico has no centralized database to coordinate the issuance of consular ID cards. This allows multiple cards to be issued under the same name, the same address, or with the same photograph.

"Second, the Government of Mexico has no interconnected databases to provide intra-consular communication to be able to verify who has or has not applied for or received a consular ID card.

"Third, the Government of Mexico issues the card to anyone who can produce a Mexican birth certificate and one other form of identity, including documents of very low reliability. Mexican birth certificates are easy to forge and they are a major item on the product list of the fraudulent document trade currently flourishing across the country and around the world. . . ."

Testimony of Steve McCraw, Assistant Director of The Office of Intelligence, FBI Before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security, and Claims on Consular ID Cards, June 26, 2003, "Consular ID Cards in a Post-9/11 World"

So how will the corrupt government of Mexico do background checks on their people? Got any ideas? Anyone who supports the President's plan?

I didn't think so.

On the Homeland Security front...

After 9/11, President Bush authorized 2,000 new border-patrol agents per year for five years. Unfortunately, the figure now stands at 200, due to budget constraints (budget constraints that, sadly, have not applied to other agencies, such as DoEd, DoT, and PBS). Strangely, $74 million has been substituted for surveillance and aerial technology, in the hopes that this will make up for the lack of manpower on the ground. But if there was any message in the 9/11 report, it was that technological intelligence is no substitute for human intelligence.

This is not simply about Mexican illegals looking to work on a farm. Al-Qa'ida already has a foothold in countries like Venezuela, where it is suspected that the Chavez government had (has?) been protecting them with false-identity papers and passports. Former Taliban mullahs also fled there in 2000. If these cutthroats try to enter the U.S., it won't be through Nova Scotia.

The Federalist Patriot (FederalistPatriot.US)
http://FederalistPatriot.US/current2004a.asp
Feb. 4, 2005
_________

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.