The Mercury News had another misguided article on illegal immigrants Saturday, Immigrant advocates criticize jail policy by Jessie Mangaliman, which reported on some recent agreements between several county jails (most recently LA County, the first one in California) and the Department of Homeland Security’s Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. I was unhappy with the article’s posture and wrote in the following (unpublished) letter:
Margaret Zaknoen and Renee Saucedo are advocating for a cause which they support, and any good fighter will use the strongest possible language, but I find their rhetoric seriously wrong (“Immigrant advocates criticize jail policy”, 2/12/05). Local police forces properly work with federal agencies every day and there is no good reason why immigration laws should be exempt from such cooperation. Nor is this situation a step towards requiring hospitals or schools to report residency status, as Saucedo exaggerates, because this screening is directly connected to the primary mission of our law enforcement agencies. One can appreciate the reluctance of other illegal immigrants to cooperate with police in most circumstances but that’s hardly a reason to compound a big problem by allowing convicted criminals to remain in the United States needlessly.
Reasonable people may campaign for changes in American immigration law or for programs which reduce the incentives that drive people here illegally; however, that’s an entirely different discussion.
Further, we have more than enough homegrown criminals straining California jails and prisons today without covering the cost for people who’ve shown contempt for our society twice over. Would Zaknoen, Saucedo and members of their organizations prefer to spend already scarce tax dollars on the cost of imprisoning convicted criminals and–given the apparent political impossibility of raising taxes–cut education or healthcare spending instead?
BillSaysThis 