Letter to the Editor of the Day: “Every Town Is Now a Border Town”

Here’s Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton, in a letter to the editor mentioning a story that was covered here in mid-July:

It took a brutal attack on a construction company owner, but local police in Warren County, Ohio, finally woke up to a grim truth about the illegal immigration problem: Every town is now a border town.

On July 15, James Parsons Jr. was beaten with a baseball bat in retaliation for the firing of a suspected illegal alien. Parsons’ offense? He had asked the worker to produce papers proving he was legally eligible to work in the United States, and then dismissed the worker when he failed to produce them. The disgruntled man and eight accomplices later returned with three handguns and several baseball bats to take their revenge.

While it is true that the majority of illegals flood across the U.S. southern border with Mexico, it is becoming increasingly obvious that many do not stay in the Southwest. They migrate to points all across the United States, bringing with them significant social problems, including violent crime. In other words, what begins as a federal issue–border security–quickly becomes a local one.

I have seen no follow-up to this story in the local press since the news broke. Anyone with an update should e-mail me.

Fitton goes on to note something that Porkoplis covered a short time ago, namely that local police can get the ability to enforce federal immigration law at a very reasonable cost:

According to records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, the 1996 Immigration and Nationality Act “authorized the Secretary of Homeland Security to enter into a written agreement to delegate the authority of enforcing federal immigration laws to a state or political sub-division of a state.” Moreover, through Immigration and Customs Enforcement, local law enforcement officers can receive immigration enforcement training–called 287(g) cross-designation training. The cost for the five-week program is a very reasonable $520 per officer.

Now for the important question: Does the program work?

As of June 2006, 136 officers received 287(g) training from four states: Alabama, Arizona, California, and Florida. These officers have accounted for 820 immigration-related arrests since the program began in 2002. And while many of the arrests relate to fraudulent documents, others involve rape, drug possession, firearm possession, driving under the influence, and burglary.

More local law enforcement agencies should jump at the chance to get their officers into this training.