Austin Police WON'T Arrest People Only For Immigration Status (would hurt trusting relationship..)

KEYE Texas ^

[chance33_98]

Austin Police Won't Arrest People Only For Immigration Status


The U.S. Justice Department, which controls the Immigration and Naturalization Service, says it can't handle the 7 million immigrants currently in the U.S. Therefore, it is considering a proposal to allow local police to do their job for them. Nearly 8 months ago, 19 hijackers slipped through America’s immigration security net committing the most devastating terrorist attacks on American soil. Now, controlling immigration in America has become drastically more important. Austin police say adding immigration duties would undo the trusting relationship local police have built with immigrants. Police say illegal immigrants often do not report crime, for fear they will be deported. Austin Police Assistant Chief Rudy Landeros says, "Our officers will not, and let me stress this because it is very important, our officers will not stop, detain, or arrest anybody solely based on their immigration status. Period." Austin police say however, they will continue to cooperate with federal agents who have criminal warrants for illegal immigrants.

[Joe Hadenuf]

I actually applaud the city police not allowing themselves to be made an arm of the Federal government

You may applaud those cops in Austin and think its great, but I can assure you, there are thousands of police, and local sheriffs that are extremely tired of seeing whole regions of their jurisdictions being turned into a criminal third world while the federal government has tied their hands behind their backs.

Reminds me of what the feds did to the citizens of California when we won the election for prop 187 that would have halted the tax support for criminal illegal aliens and the feds walked in and declared our free election illegal, and burned our ballots.

[Joe Hadenuf]

Living in Austin, I'm glad. I don't think the federal government should be interfering in the affairs of the local PDs. I was surprised, to be honest. Austin PD has been becoming more and more militarized as it is.

Well then, Guess its only the American citizens that their militarized police force is focused on, huh?

[texlok]

It's an attitude of "we live here, we vote here, and no g.d. suit thousands of miles away is gonna' tell us how to police anymore than how to teach, how to farm, how to ranch!"

I think those running Texas have a better view of who's dangerous and who's not in this state than Washington, just as the other state governments have a better view.

Austin PD is undermanned as it is (according to them at least). We don't need longer response times because Ridge or whoever said the local police need to go after the Mexicans that are mowing the lawns and cleaning the buildings (and that's not racist, that's just the way Texas is. I wouldn't be surprised if I walk past half a dozen illegal immigrants everyday, and they are hard workers, I have to admit).

[texlok]

If I were the Justice Department I would order the Police Chief to do his job, and when he didn't slap him with a writ of mandamus and haul his ass into court where he could be fined or jailed.

So you want to take local power away in other words?

[Joe Hadenuf]

and that's not racist, that's just the way Texas is. I wouldn't be surprised if I walk past half a dozen illegal immigrants everyday, and they are hard workers, I have to admit).

Hey tex, here's a couple of your Texas neighbors the seem to have a different view than you do.

Why no! Nothing like that could happen to the great "Republic of Texas". We've got the Alamo. Why, our motto is "Don't Mess With Texas". We print it on T-shirts and refridgerator magnets and everything. We are the biggest braggarts and chest beaters in the nation. You don't know what you are talking about. Illegal Mexicans aren't taken over Texas. Texas is conquering Mexico. yeah, that's it. That's the ticket. we will just keep telling ourselves that. That way we won't have our overblown pride hurt. Yeah! Thats it.

570 posted on 3/13/02 9:38 PM Pacific by southern rock [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 564 | View Replies | Report Abuse ]

Hey Joe, here is one Texan that is bothered by the millions of illegals in Texas. We're flooded up to our necks in illegals in this part of Texas, and I've hadenuf! Deport them all now, and throw in the illegal alien luvin' Texans as well if they love them so very much.

70 posted on 3/21/02 11:43 PM Pacific by Eddie Haskell [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 40 | View Replies | Report Abuse ]

[texlok]

Don't any of you seem to understand, it's not the job of the local PDs to determine who is and who isn't legally here. It's the federal government's job.

Do you want to put them in the position of stopping everybody who's skin is dark, checking for papers?

Please read this : Austin police say however, they will continue to cooperate with federal agents who have criminal warrants for illegal immigrants.

I cannot believe that some of you think the local PDs should somehow become another arm of the INS.

[texlok]

Our wonderful ex-gov is going to do his damnedest to make sure all those illegals become legal, so I don't see how it matters anyways, lol

[WRhine]

Three other fairly large cities in Texas have signed on to not checking immigration status: Fort Worth, Arlington, and Plano(north of Dallas). I suspect most city police departments in Texas are not going to become adjuncts to the INS.

It's not a case of being an adjunct to the INS. What other mechanism other than local law enforcement can be effective in finding and detaining the millions upon millions of illegal aliens spread throughout this country? To duplicate what state and local police forces are capable of doing on illegal immigration would require more than 100,000 INS agents.

Seems to me that the real problem here is that much of the Texas Police Force have been Mexicanized and marginalized by political correctness. When a Cop can freely tell the citizens that pay his salary that he won't take federal directives that run at the heart of national security there is something radically wrong. For a terrorist probing for soft spots the news couldn't be better.

Funny how Texas has this problem. What's the name of that Texas Governor that recently got himself a promotion?

[Fabozz]

"Originally we asked INS to train a select number of local police to access their database via computer at the jail to check the legal status of ALL ARRESTEES."

Good idea, and nothing in the APD's policy prevents that. This is about checking the residency status of witnesses and victims.

Personally, I think that all the small-government conservatives here eager to turn the APD into a branch office of the federal government are really onto something. But let's not stop with the INS; there's lots of overworked and underpaid federal agencies that need our help!

Anytime someone is mugged and reports the crime to the police, the APD should audit him for the IRS. Anytime a woman is raped, the cops should give her a drug test for the DEA. Anytime a car is sideswiped by a hit-and-run driver, the highway patrol should check its emissions level for the EPA. Anytime a home is burgled, the police should ransack it looking for pirated videotapes and bootleg MP3s. Anytime a business is vandalized, Austin's finest should conduct a thorough review of its hiring practices and workplace safety.

And so forth. I'm sure the folks in Washington can provide us a list, since we Texans are too left-wing, ignorant and provincial to be trusted with setting our own law-enforcement priorities. This plan would have three important benefits:

• First, of course, we'd finally start to put a dent in crimes like these that the federal government just doesn't have time to pursue.
• Second, we'd ease the pressure on the pared-to-the-bone federal budget, moving the costs of enforcement from the cash-strapped feds down to the local level, where police departments have more money than they know what to do with.
• Third, and best of all, crime statistics would drop through the floor. Why, I'll bet you'd see at least a 25% drop in reported crimes the day this policy went into effect! And fewer reported crimes to solve leaves the APD even more time to pursue other federal crimes—endangered-species habitat destruction, CFR spending-limit violations, you name it.

Sure, some Austin police officials might whine that the job they were hired to do is to protect the lives and property of Austinites. But I know I speak for all Austinites when I say that anyone who expresses such feeble excuses should be first on the list for investigation, because he obviously has something to hide. Any true public servant should know that his first duty is to Washington, D.C. Only after the workload of federal employees is properly lightened can those lazy, bureaucratic, good-for-nothing beat officers be permitted to squander my tax money chasing after burglars, murderers, rapists and other petty criminals who merely violate state and local laws.

[Jhoffa_]

I suspect most city police departments in Texas are not going to become adjuncts to the INS.

And, how do you feel about that?

(Hey.. laws.. whatever.. )

[texlok]

When a Cop can freely tell the citizens that pay his salary that he won't take federal directives that run at the heart of national security there is something radically wrong. For a terrorist probing for soft spots the news couldn't be better.

Yes, those illegals mowing the lawns and washing the dishes are just waiting to strap bombs on themselves or take over airliners or mail out anthrax.

I stand corrected.

[texlok]

But I know I speak for all Austinites when I say that anyone who expresses such feeble excuses should be first on the list for investigation, because he obviously has something to hide. Any true public servant should know that his first duty is to Washington, D.C. Only after the workload of federal employees is properly lightened can those lazy, bureaucratic, good-for-nothing beat officers be permitted to squander my tax money chasing after burglars, murderers, rapists and other petty criminals who merely violate state and local laws.

Your definitly speaking for me.

[usadave]

I actually applaud the city police not allowing themselves to be made an arm of the Federal government.

Well, then the city police ought to quit responding to bank robberies because that's a violation of federal law just like illegal immigration is. Or should the city police respond to some violations of federal law but not to other violations of federal law?

[Semaphore Heathcliffe]

Best way to love America is to stay the hell out of big cities.

BTTT

[texlok]

How are the local PD's supposed to go about looking for illegals?

I'm not just asking that question to you.

For those of you unfamiliar with Texas, there are quite a few Hispanics here. Some have been around much longer than the original 300 white families. Some had ancestors who fought (and died of course) at the Alamo. They were inside the Alamo by the way. You know, along side Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett (some outside of Texas may not have heard of them, but a simple search on google will tell you a lot)

/sarcasm off

Is APD supposed to stop every brown-skinned person and ask for their papers?

[HiTech RedNeck]

Reminds me of what the feds did to the citizens of California when we won the election for prop 187 that would have halted the tax support for criminal illegal aliens and the feds walked in and declared our free election illegal, and burned our ballots.

This comparison is silly in the extreme and you know it. Nothing should force the state or city to provide services to such people. (Or for... ducking!... anybody else.)

[usadave]

If police in Austin start rousting all the illegal immigrants, guess how much help they are going to get for info on murders, rapes, etc... from illegal eyewitnesses.

You could use that same reasoning to rationalize not rousting known car thieves or burglars or con artists in the general population because some day they may be able to provide information on a more serious crime committed by another criminal.

[WRhine]

Yes, those illegals mowing the lawns and washing the dishes are just waiting to strap bombs on themselves or take over airliners or mail out anthrax.

When the police department of a city announces they are not going to inquire about a person's immigration status I would think that this might perk up a few Middle Eastern ears that wish to do America harm. I might add that the 8+ million (and growing) contingent of Hispanics that are here illegally brings its own future national security risk. You know, those risks that we find out about later when the damage is done...like 9/11. Do we always have to learn after the fact?