From Staff Reports
American Journal
November 16, 2011 1:54 pm
WESTBROOK – Agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) this morning raided a Westbrook home and a restaurant on the Westbrook/Portland line.
Similar raids have been reported at restaurants in Brewer, Waterville and Lewiston.
The raid of the residence, at 100 Bridge St., near the Dana Warp Mill, involved Westbrook police officers as well as federal agents. Agents could be seen talking to a man outside the residence.
Agents also raided Kon, an Asian restaurant on Brighton Avenue in Portland, near I-95 and the Westbrook line.
Officials from ICE referred all questions to the U.S. Attorney's Office, which declined comment at the time. The raid coincided with raids at Super China Buffet in Waterville and Twin City Buffet in Brewer, as well as at a home in Brewer, which have been reported by Current Publishing's media partner, WCSH6 NEWSCENTER, which also reported that a sign at the Brewer restaurant said it is closed today. The Lewiston Sun Journal is reporting an ICE raid at a restaurant in Lewiston, as well.
Check back to keepmecurrent.com for more on this developing story.
http://www.keepmecurrent.com/american_journal/news/westbrook-home-portland-restaurant-among-targets-of-federal-raids/article_c6f1dad6-107a-11e1-9ad1-001cc4c03286.html
Showing posts with label Expulsions in OR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Expulsions in OR. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Young man who grew up in Milwaukie awaits vote on Senate bill that would create path to citizenship for minors brought to U.S. without documentation
By Anne Saker
The Oregonian
December 07, 2010
No one will be more interested in the outcome of a U.S. Senate vote today than a 20-year-old man who grew up in Milwaukie but discovered he was neither a citizen nor a legal resident when federal authorities arrested him in August and deported him to Mexico.
"My parents never chose to tell me about my legal status," said Hector Lopez. "I like to think I'm somewhat charismatic, and they didn't want to step on that, so they let me live oblivious."
Today, the Senate is expected to vote on a bill, 10 years in the making, that would create a path for young people such as Lopez -- brought to the United States as minors without documentation -- to earn citizenship through military service or college coursework.
As recently as September, the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act -- DREAM -- looked to be on a glide to passage. But the November election turned in part on the immigration issue, with some candidates arguing for a throw-them-all-out approach even as the Obama administration hit a record number of deportations, close to 400,000, in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30. Half of those were people convicted of crimes.
Lopez would be among about 2 million children and young adults eligible for citizenship under the bill. Opponents, led by Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, say the act would be in effect amnesty and would attract more undocumented immigration.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement tracks numbers not state by state but by region; Oregon is counted with Washington and Alaska. Deportations from those states peaked in fiscal year 2008 at 10,910. The number dropped to 9,933 in fiscal year 2010, but a higher proportion of convicted criminals were deported than in the previous five years.
Spokeswoman Lorie Dankers in Seattle said the agency's director "has in many venues said the goal was to try to remove 400,000 people, and we were funded to do that."
But the administration applied a number of tactics to hit that target, according to a story published Monday by the journalism nonprofit Center for Investigative Reporting.
The story reported the agency counted nearly 20,000 immigrants who had left the previous year. Officials ran a repatriation program to Mexico five weeks longer than ever to count 6,500 more exits. Agents were directed to encourage eligible deportees to simply return voluntarily to their home countries, a method that allows a noncitizen to apply later for legal residence or to travel to the United States.
Hector Lopez was deported to Mexico on Sept. 1. Since then, he has attracted the attention and resources of a wealthy Texas businessman, Ralph Isenberg, who became an immigration advocate after fighting his wife's immigration problems for years.
Lopez "may not be a citizen technically, but he's as American as you or I," Isenberg said Tuesday from his office in Dallas. "I challenge anyone to show that this kid doesn't deserve this opportunity."
Lopez was 6 months old when his parents brought him to Milwaukie from Mexico. When he was 9 years old, his parents hired a lawyer to secure immigration papers; the lawyer got work documents, then disappeared without telling the Lopez family of an upcoming hearing, so they did not know that a judge issued a deportation order.
Meanwhile, Lopez was elected student-body president at Rex Putnam High School, where he graduated. He was a Little League coach and logged 600 hours of community service. He went to Clackamas Community College for two years and aimed to transfer to Portland State University to major in marketing.
On Aug. 23, immigration agents arrested Lopez and his parents; Hector and his father were deported, and his mother won a delay to stay with Hector's 15-year-old brother, born in Oregon.
Lopez speaks little Spanish. He said he stayed with a friend of his mother's, and, "At first, you try to be optimistic: I'll be out of here in no time. After a few weeks, you realize it's going to take a long time."
Lopez said he began to fear for his life, although he declined to describe the particulars. On Nov. 17, he rode a bus to the city of Sonora and asked at the U.S. border for asylum on a "reasonable fear" for his safety. He was put in a detention center in Florence, Ariz., to await an interview that has not been scheduled.
"I was trying to avoid going to a detention center. But then I realized that alive in a detention center in the United States was better than dead in Mexico," Lopez said.
The mother of one of Lopez's high school friends searched for help. She learned of Isenberg's assistance to a 19-year-old Texas teenager deported in February to Bangladesh. He agreed to help Lopez.
Isenberg said he paid for Lopez's lawyers and offered to fly his mother and brother to Arizona.
"When I say we're involved, I mean we're involved," Isenberg said. "We've lit the fuse on it."
http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2010/12/young_man_who_grew_up_in_milwaukie_awaits_vote_on_bill_that_would_create_a_path_to_citizenship_for_u.html
The Oregonian
December 07, 2010
No one will be more interested in the outcome of a U.S. Senate vote today than a 20-year-old man who grew up in Milwaukie but discovered he was neither a citizen nor a legal resident when federal authorities arrested him in August and deported him to Mexico.
"My parents never chose to tell me about my legal status," said Hector Lopez. "I like to think I'm somewhat charismatic, and they didn't want to step on that, so they let me live oblivious."
Today, the Senate is expected to vote on a bill, 10 years in the making, that would create a path for young people such as Lopez -- brought to the United States as minors without documentation -- to earn citizenship through military service or college coursework.
As recently as September, the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act -- DREAM -- looked to be on a glide to passage. But the November election turned in part on the immigration issue, with some candidates arguing for a throw-them-all-out approach even as the Obama administration hit a record number of deportations, close to 400,000, in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30. Half of those were people convicted of crimes.
Lopez would be among about 2 million children and young adults eligible for citizenship under the bill. Opponents, led by Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, say the act would be in effect amnesty and would attract more undocumented immigration.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement tracks numbers not state by state but by region; Oregon is counted with Washington and Alaska. Deportations from those states peaked in fiscal year 2008 at 10,910. The number dropped to 9,933 in fiscal year 2010, but a higher proportion of convicted criminals were deported than in the previous five years.
Spokeswoman Lorie Dankers in Seattle said the agency's director "has in many venues said the goal was to try to remove 400,000 people, and we were funded to do that."
But the administration applied a number of tactics to hit that target, according to a story published Monday by the journalism nonprofit Center for Investigative Reporting.
The story reported the agency counted nearly 20,000 immigrants who had left the previous year. Officials ran a repatriation program to Mexico five weeks longer than ever to count 6,500 more exits. Agents were directed to encourage eligible deportees to simply return voluntarily to their home countries, a method that allows a noncitizen to apply later for legal residence or to travel to the United States.
Hector Lopez was deported to Mexico on Sept. 1. Since then, he has attracted the attention and resources of a wealthy Texas businessman, Ralph Isenberg, who became an immigration advocate after fighting his wife's immigration problems for years.
Lopez "may not be a citizen technically, but he's as American as you or I," Isenberg said Tuesday from his office in Dallas. "I challenge anyone to show that this kid doesn't deserve this opportunity."
Lopez was 6 months old when his parents brought him to Milwaukie from Mexico. When he was 9 years old, his parents hired a lawyer to secure immigration papers; the lawyer got work documents, then disappeared without telling the Lopez family of an upcoming hearing, so they did not know that a judge issued a deportation order.
Meanwhile, Lopez was elected student-body president at Rex Putnam High School, where he graduated. He was a Little League coach and logged 600 hours of community service. He went to Clackamas Community College for two years and aimed to transfer to Portland State University to major in marketing.
On Aug. 23, immigration agents arrested Lopez and his parents; Hector and his father were deported, and his mother won a delay to stay with Hector's 15-year-old brother, born in Oregon.
Lopez speaks little Spanish. He said he stayed with a friend of his mother's, and, "At first, you try to be optimistic: I'll be out of here in no time. After a few weeks, you realize it's going to take a long time."
Lopez said he began to fear for his life, although he declined to describe the particulars. On Nov. 17, he rode a bus to the city of Sonora and asked at the U.S. border for asylum on a "reasonable fear" for his safety. He was put in a detention center in Florence, Ariz., to await an interview that has not been scheduled.
"I was trying to avoid going to a detention center. But then I realized that alive in a detention center in the United States was better than dead in Mexico," Lopez said.
The mother of one of Lopez's high school friends searched for help. She learned of Isenberg's assistance to a 19-year-old Texas teenager deported in February to Bangladesh. He agreed to help Lopez.
Isenberg said he paid for Lopez's lawyers and offered to fly his mother and brother to Arizona.
"When I say we're involved, I mean we're involved," Isenberg said. "We've lit the fuse on it."
http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2010/12/young_man_who_grew_up_in_milwaukie_awaits_vote_on_bill_that_would_create_a_path_to_citizenship_for_u.html
Monday, November 22, 2010
Northwest deported fewer in fiscal year
Anchorage Daily News
11/20/10
SEATTLE -- New federal data shows that the number of deportations of illegal immigrants from Washington, Oregon and Alaska dropped by nearly 9 percent during the last fiscal year.
But deportations of immigrants whom the government considered convicted criminals continued to rise.
The new data released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shows spans from Oct. 1, 2009, to Sept. 30, 2010. It shows that 9,833 people were deported from the Pacific Northwest -- the second year in a row overall removals have dropped in the region.
Forty-eight percent of the immigrants removed were considered convicted criminals by the government. Since 2007, the number of deportations in the Pacific Northwest of immigrants with criminal records has doubled, from 2,302 to 4,714 in 2010.
Nationwide, more than 392,000 people were removed from the country.
http://www.adn.com/2010/11/20/1564998/northwest-deported-fewer-in-fiscal.html
11/20/10
SEATTLE -- New federal data shows that the number of deportations of illegal immigrants from Washington, Oregon and Alaska dropped by nearly 9 percent during the last fiscal year.
But deportations of immigrants whom the government considered convicted criminals continued to rise.
The new data released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shows spans from Oct. 1, 2009, to Sept. 30, 2010. It shows that 9,833 people were deported from the Pacific Northwest -- the second year in a row overall removals have dropped in the region.
Forty-eight percent of the immigrants removed were considered convicted criminals by the government. Since 2007, the number of deportations in the Pacific Northwest of immigrants with criminal records has doubled, from 2,302 to 4,714 in 2010.
Nationwide, more than 392,000 people were removed from the country.
http://www.adn.com/2010/11/20/1564998/northwest-deported-fewer-in-fiscal.html
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Keeping the dream alive for immigrants
By Elliott Young
OregonLive.Com
October 01, 2010
Hector Lopez was brought to the United States from Mexico by his parents when he was 6 weeks old. He lived a productive and successful life in the Portland area, attended Clackamas Community College, and he planned to transfer into Portland State University. That all changed one month ago when he was arrested with his father and deported to Mexico for being in this country illegally. Hector doesn't speak Spanish and wants to return home.
According to the Migration Policy Institute, the Dream Act would make about 700,000 students like Hector eligible for conditional legal residency; another million more immigrants would become eligible in the future. But the Dream Act has stalled in the Senate, where it's been held hostage to the defense authorization bill to which it's tethered. The Dream Act allows those who entered the country as minors, who graduate from U.S. high schools and who are of "good moral character" to earn conditional residency in this country. It makes sense for the Senate to debate and vote on the Dream Act and not to allow it to be held hostage to political maneuvers.
Hector Lopez's case is exemplary. He was a motivated student, a senior class president in his high school in Milwaukie, and from all reports he is well-respected in his community. But even if the Dream Act passes and 700,000 students have the opportunity to continue their studies and/or join the U.S. military, there will still be more than 10 million other immigrants who continue to live in the shadows.
During the administration of President George W. Bush, workplace raids by Immigration & Customs Enforcement increased dramatically, and a general wave of fear spread through immigrant communities across the nation. Barack Obama promised a more humane policy toward undocumented immigrants. But what we've seen since Obama became president is a different version of the same Bush policies toward illegal immigrants.
Obama promised to focus enforcement efforts on felons and repeat offenders among the migrant population. The reality is that under the Obama administration ICE has deported an unprecedented wide swath of the immigrant population. In 2009, only 35 percent of the deported immigrants were convicted criminals, meaning that the vast majority of deportees were not criminals. This year, ICE expects to forcibly deport a record 400,000 immigrants. That's 10 percent more than were forcibly deported in 2008, 25 percent more than were deported in 2007 under Bush, and an astounding 1,300 percent more than were deported in 1990 under George H.W. Bush. While ICE has changed its tactics from military-style workplace raids to company audits, the new strategy winds up deporting more non-criminal immigrants than Bush II's Rambo tactics.
There are some who may argue that all illegal immigrants are criminals. But coming into the country without proper documentation is a misdemeanor, the same as jaywalking or a speeding ticket. It makes sense for the government to focus its enforcement efforts on locating and deporting illegal immigrants who have committed violent crimes and are a danger to society. But it's an utter waste of government resources to deport hard-working, law-abiding immigrants, some of whom have lived virtually their entire lives in this country.
Hector Lopez languishes in Mexico, a country he doesn't know and whose language he doesn't speak. The bill that could help Hector and the thousands of other students who want to improve their lives and contribute to society also languishes in the halls of Congress. The dream of coming to the land of opportunity still draws millions of people to our shores and across our borders. Let's keep the dream alive.
Elliott Young lives in Portland and is the chair of the History department at Lewis & Clark College.
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/10/keeping_the_dream_alive_for_im.html
OregonLive.Com
October 01, 2010
Hector Lopez was brought to the United States from Mexico by his parents when he was 6 weeks old. He lived a productive and successful life in the Portland area, attended Clackamas Community College, and he planned to transfer into Portland State University. That all changed one month ago when he was arrested with his father and deported to Mexico for being in this country illegally. Hector doesn't speak Spanish and wants to return home.
According to the Migration Policy Institute, the Dream Act would make about 700,000 students like Hector eligible for conditional legal residency; another million more immigrants would become eligible in the future. But the Dream Act has stalled in the Senate, where it's been held hostage to the defense authorization bill to which it's tethered. The Dream Act allows those who entered the country as minors, who graduate from U.S. high schools and who are of "good moral character" to earn conditional residency in this country. It makes sense for the Senate to debate and vote on the Dream Act and not to allow it to be held hostage to political maneuvers.
Hector Lopez's case is exemplary. He was a motivated student, a senior class president in his high school in Milwaukie, and from all reports he is well-respected in his community. But even if the Dream Act passes and 700,000 students have the opportunity to continue their studies and/or join the U.S. military, there will still be more than 10 million other immigrants who continue to live in the shadows.
During the administration of President George W. Bush, workplace raids by Immigration & Customs Enforcement increased dramatically, and a general wave of fear spread through immigrant communities across the nation. Barack Obama promised a more humane policy toward undocumented immigrants. But what we've seen since Obama became president is a different version of the same Bush policies toward illegal immigrants.
Obama promised to focus enforcement efforts on felons and repeat offenders among the migrant population. The reality is that under the Obama administration ICE has deported an unprecedented wide swath of the immigrant population. In 2009, only 35 percent of the deported immigrants were convicted criminals, meaning that the vast majority of deportees were not criminals. This year, ICE expects to forcibly deport a record 400,000 immigrants. That's 10 percent more than were forcibly deported in 2008, 25 percent more than were deported in 2007 under Bush, and an astounding 1,300 percent more than were deported in 1990 under George H.W. Bush. While ICE has changed its tactics from military-style workplace raids to company audits, the new strategy winds up deporting more non-criminal immigrants than Bush II's Rambo tactics.
There are some who may argue that all illegal immigrants are criminals. But coming into the country without proper documentation is a misdemeanor, the same as jaywalking or a speeding ticket. It makes sense for the government to focus its enforcement efforts on locating and deporting illegal immigrants who have committed violent crimes and are a danger to society. But it's an utter waste of government resources to deport hard-working, law-abiding immigrants, some of whom have lived virtually their entire lives in this country.
Hector Lopez languishes in Mexico, a country he doesn't know and whose language he doesn't speak. The bill that could help Hector and the thousands of other students who want to improve their lives and contribute to society also languishes in the halls of Congress. The dream of coming to the land of opportunity still draws millions of people to our shores and across our borders. Let's keep the dream alive.
Elliott Young lives in Portland and is the chair of the History department at Lewis & Clark College.
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/10/keeping_the_dream_alive_for_im.html
Friday, September 24, 2010
Milwaukie man's case shows why immigration law is needed, friends and supporters say
By Anne Saker
The Oregonian
September 21, 2010
In a small classroom at Portland State, the university president, two elected officials and a pack of students rallied Tuesday around a cell phone delivering the voice of Hector Lopez.
"I want go home to Portland," said Lopez, 20, from Mexico City. "I spent my life in America. I just want to come back home, where I belong."
Lopez is among 2 million young people across the nation who grew up in the United States without citizenship because their parents are undocumented immigrants.
A bill in Congress would create a course to citizenship for those like Lopez stalled in the Senate Tuesday amid debate over a Pentagon spending measure.
Lopez was 6 weeks old in 1990 when his parents came into the country illegally and settled in Milwaukie. Siovhan Sheridan-Ayala, his Seattle lawyer, said that when Lopez was 9, his parents paid someone to file immigration papers. They never knew that the person never did the work or that a judge later issued a deportation order.
Lopez did well in school and became senior class president at Rex Putnam High School. He got a Social Security number and an Oregon driver's license. He coached Little League and did hundreds of hours of community service. He aimed to enroll at Portland State to study marketing.
But on Aug. 23, federal authorities picked up Lopez and his father on the 11-year-old deportation order. On Sept. 1, they were shipped to Mexico -- where Lopez said Tuesday he doesn't speak or write the language and cannot find a job.
Lopez's defenders called a news conference Tuesday at Portland State to urge passage of the bill in Congress, the Development, Relief and Education of Alien Minors or DREAM Act.
"The country is better for us being here," said Portland State President Wim Wiewel, who emigrated to the United States as a young man. "We are fools if we do not change the current system."
Jeff Cogen, chairman of the Multnomah County Commission, and City Commissioner Amanda Fritz -- also an immigrant -- said their governmental bodies have unanimously approved resolutions asking Congress to pass the bill.
http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2010/09/milwaukie_mans_case_shows_why_immigration_law_is_needed_friends_and_supporters_say.html
The Oregonian
September 21, 2010
In a small classroom at Portland State, the university president, two elected officials and a pack of students rallied Tuesday around a cell phone delivering the voice of Hector Lopez.
"I want go home to Portland," said Lopez, 20, from Mexico City. "I spent my life in America. I just want to come back home, where I belong."
Lopez is among 2 million young people across the nation who grew up in the United States without citizenship because their parents are undocumented immigrants.
A bill in Congress would create a course to citizenship for those like Lopez stalled in the Senate Tuesday amid debate over a Pentagon spending measure.
Lopez was 6 weeks old in 1990 when his parents came into the country illegally and settled in Milwaukie. Siovhan Sheridan-Ayala, his Seattle lawyer, said that when Lopez was 9, his parents paid someone to file immigration papers. They never knew that the person never did the work or that a judge later issued a deportation order.
Lopez did well in school and became senior class president at Rex Putnam High School. He got a Social Security number and an Oregon driver's license. He coached Little League and did hundreds of hours of community service. He aimed to enroll at Portland State to study marketing.
But on Aug. 23, federal authorities picked up Lopez and his father on the 11-year-old deportation order. On Sept. 1, they were shipped to Mexico -- where Lopez said Tuesday he doesn't speak or write the language and cannot find a job.
Lopez's defenders called a news conference Tuesday at Portland State to urge passage of the bill in Congress, the Development, Relief and Education of Alien Minors or DREAM Act.
"The country is better for us being here," said Portland State President Wim Wiewel, who emigrated to the United States as a young man. "We are fools if we do not change the current system."
Jeff Cogen, chairman of the Multnomah County Commission, and City Commissioner Amanda Fritz -- also an immigrant -- said their governmental bodies have unanimously approved resolutions asking Congress to pass the bill.
http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2010/09/milwaukie_mans_case_shows_why_immigration_law_is_needed_friends_and_supporters_say.html
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Deportations up 10 percent in Pacific Northwest
By MANUEL VALDES
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
July 17, 2009
SEATTLE -- Deportations from Washington, Oregon and Alaska jumped nearly 10 percent from a year ago, according to new figures from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Illegal immigrants with criminal records comprised 60 percent of the total - a significant jump from recent years when that figure hovered around 40 percent. ICE attributed the jump to its emphasis on deporting those with records.
For the first nine months of the federal fiscal year - October through June - more than 8,000 deportations originated from the Pacific Northwest, compared to 7,345 in the same period last year.
The new figures were a mixed bag for Pramila Jayapal, executive director of OneAmerica, a Seattle-based immigrant advocate group.
She has been encouraged by the actions of the Obama administration but would like to see more accountability from ICE, such as breaking down the types of crimes that prompted deportations.
"I'm very troubled, it is really important to distinguish who these criminal immigrants are ... distinguishing violent criminals from people who get picked up for misdemeanors," Jayapal said.
ICE does not release breakdowns of the crimes involved in deportations.
Meanwhile, proponents of stricter immigration rules said focusing on just those with criminal records is an incomplete approach.
The immigration issue has taken new spins as the Obama administration introduces new policies on enforcement, and Congress wrestles with writing a comprehensive immigration bill.
A work site raid in Bellingham, Wash., in February became a national issue after Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano ordered a review of the operation.
It was the first raid of the Obama administration, which had signaled that it wanted to move away from raids to focus on scrutinizing employers who hire illegal workers.
Earlier this month, Homeland Security released a list of 652 businesses nationwide that will receive audits of their work force - 26 are in the Pacific Northwest.
Neil Clark, field office director for ICE detention and removal operations in Seattle, said the agency will soon launch a program in the region called "Secure Communities" that works with local police to identify illegal immigrants with criminal records using fingerprint technology.
ICE has already opened a 24-hour command center in Washington where local law enforcement can check a person's background.
Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, a Washington, D.C., group that lobbies for stricter immigration rules, said focusing on people with criminal records does not serve as a deterrent to others who want to come to this country illegally.
"The administration is sending a signal, if you're not a serious criminal we're not going to be looking for you," Mehlman said.
Mehlman believes enforcement efforts also should include employers who hire undocumented workers and work site raids and other tactics to remove incentives for people to migrate to the United States.
"Deportation is a legitimate component (of immigration reform), but we're not going to solve this problem through deportation alone," he said.
http://www.seattlepi.com/local/6420ap_wa_deportations_nw.html?source=mypi
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
July 17, 2009
SEATTLE -- Deportations from Washington, Oregon and Alaska jumped nearly 10 percent from a year ago, according to new figures from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Illegal immigrants with criminal records comprised 60 percent of the total - a significant jump from recent years when that figure hovered around 40 percent. ICE attributed the jump to its emphasis on deporting those with records.
For the first nine months of the federal fiscal year - October through June - more than 8,000 deportations originated from the Pacific Northwest, compared to 7,345 in the same period last year.
The new figures were a mixed bag for Pramila Jayapal, executive director of OneAmerica, a Seattle-based immigrant advocate group.
She has been encouraged by the actions of the Obama administration but would like to see more accountability from ICE, such as breaking down the types of crimes that prompted deportations.
"I'm very troubled, it is really important to distinguish who these criminal immigrants are ... distinguishing violent criminals from people who get picked up for misdemeanors," Jayapal said.
ICE does not release breakdowns of the crimes involved in deportations.
Meanwhile, proponents of stricter immigration rules said focusing on just those with criminal records is an incomplete approach.
The immigration issue has taken new spins as the Obama administration introduces new policies on enforcement, and Congress wrestles with writing a comprehensive immigration bill.
A work site raid in Bellingham, Wash., in February became a national issue after Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano ordered a review of the operation.
It was the first raid of the Obama administration, which had signaled that it wanted to move away from raids to focus on scrutinizing employers who hire illegal workers.
Earlier this month, Homeland Security released a list of 652 businesses nationwide that will receive audits of their work force - 26 are in the Pacific Northwest.
Neil Clark, field office director for ICE detention and removal operations in Seattle, said the agency will soon launch a program in the region called "Secure Communities" that works with local police to identify illegal immigrants with criminal records using fingerprint technology.
ICE has already opened a 24-hour command center in Washington where local law enforcement can check a person's background.
Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, a Washington, D.C., group that lobbies for stricter immigration rules, said focusing on people with criminal records does not serve as a deterrent to others who want to come to this country illegally.
"The administration is sending a signal, if you're not a serious criminal we're not going to be looking for you," Mehlman said.
Mehlman believes enforcement efforts also should include employers who hire undocumented workers and work site raids and other tactics to remove incentives for people to migrate to the United States.
"Deportation is a legitimate component (of immigration reform), but we're not going to solve this problem through deportation alone," he said.
http://www.seattlepi.com/local/6420ap_wa_deportations_nw.html?source=mypi
Friday, July 17, 2009
Two Years And Four Thousand Arrests Later: Del Monte And The ICE Raids, An Update
Immigration Daily
by Stephen Manning, Sarah Loose, and Alice Perry
A few hours after dawn, several white unmarked vans departed from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) headquarters in downtown Portland. Workers, most of whom lived in North Portland, had left their homes earlier to arrive at the Fresh Del Monte food processing factory, donning their safety clothes and gear to begin another workday cutting and packaging fruit. By 10:30am, agents had spilled from the unmarked vans and surrounded the factory. It was June 12, 2007. The most ferocious immigration raid in Oregon and, at that time, in the United States was underway. By late afternoon, 168 individuals had been arrested.
Since then, ICE has arrested some 4,345 individuals in large scale raids. As the Portland community dealt with the raid and in communities across the country reacted, we learned many things about ICE, about immigration, about ourselves and, most importantly, about our communities.
First, we learned that the whole theory behind ICE’s large scale raid tactics was illegal. ICE’s mantra was that immigrants are criminals. A few months ago, in a case called Flores-Figueroa v. United States, the Supreme Court rejected that theory in a unanimous decision.
Second, we learned that raids like Del Monte have negative impacts beyond just the individuals detained. In Portland, teachers struggled to explain to children why their classmates had suddenly disappeared, even as many children including citizen children expressed fears that they too would be taken away. Massive amounts of energy and money went into dealing with raid’s aftermath. Two years later, the emotional and financial costs to the Portland area are still undetermined. Children are still separated from their parents. Faith communities struggle to provide support to detained immigrants who are still awaiting resolution of the immigration court cases. It became clear that when the due process rights of our legal system are ignored in the context of a raid, we all suffer.
For example, in Postville, Iowa, the scene of another massive raid a year ago, the entire town is at the point of going bankrupt. There is an eerie abandoned quality to the town from the schools to the shuttered businesses. The town shrank by half. "It's like you're in an oven and there's no place to go and there's no timer to get you out," said former Postville-Mayor Robert Penrod, who, overwhelmed, resigned earlier this year.
Third, we learned that enforcement only – deportation – will solve nothing and is a waste of time and money. In Postville, the initial price tag for the raid was more than $5.2 million in government costs. In Portland, we are still assessing the financial costs of the Del Monte raid. The economic impact locally has been substantial. Nationally, the number of people detained annually is triple what it was just ten years ago, with an annual cost of $1.7 billion, yet the problems with our immigration system have not been resolved. Ultimately, deporting people does nothing to address the root cause of migration and it underscores the need for a reasonable, rationale solution.
Fourth, we learned that there is no “line” for immigrants to stand in. Saying there is a line implies everyone has a chance to get in line; this is not true for most immigrants and was not true for most if not all of the Del Monte raid victims.
Oregonians are pragmatic people. We overwhelmingly reject the notion that we should (or even that we can) deport 12 million people. Americans know that immigrants contribute to our society and we want a long-term solution.
We learned that Oregonians are also sensible about reforming the immigration system – Oregonians on all sides of the political spectrum. People prefer “a comprehensive approach that secures the border, cracks down on employers who hire illegal immigrants, and requires all illegal immigrants to register and meet certain requirements to become legal” over raids. They join Americans across the country 86% of who support comprehensive reform, with 58% strongly supporting it.
Most importantly, we learned that our community is strongest when we act together and work across divides to build relationships. Del Monte workers impacted in the raid and currently stuck in legal and financial limbo, have organized themselves and are partnering with local faith communities and organizations to educate about the need for just and humane immigration reform. Oregonians across the state have come forward to say that what happened at Del Monte was a tragedy and a waste and to assert that immigrants in Oregon are part of the fabric of our community.
http://www.ilw.com/articles/2009,0715-manning.shtm
by Stephen Manning, Sarah Loose, and Alice Perry
A few hours after dawn, several white unmarked vans departed from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) headquarters in downtown Portland. Workers, most of whom lived in North Portland, had left their homes earlier to arrive at the Fresh Del Monte food processing factory, donning their safety clothes and gear to begin another workday cutting and packaging fruit. By 10:30am, agents had spilled from the unmarked vans and surrounded the factory. It was June 12, 2007. The most ferocious immigration raid in Oregon and, at that time, in the United States was underway. By late afternoon, 168 individuals had been arrested.
Since then, ICE has arrested some 4,345 individuals in large scale raids. As the Portland community dealt with the raid and in communities across the country reacted, we learned many things about ICE, about immigration, about ourselves and, most importantly, about our communities.
First, we learned that the whole theory behind ICE’s large scale raid tactics was illegal. ICE’s mantra was that immigrants are criminals. A few months ago, in a case called Flores-Figueroa v. United States, the Supreme Court rejected that theory in a unanimous decision.
Second, we learned that raids like Del Monte have negative impacts beyond just the individuals detained. In Portland, teachers struggled to explain to children why their classmates had suddenly disappeared, even as many children including citizen children expressed fears that they too would be taken away. Massive amounts of energy and money went into dealing with raid’s aftermath. Two years later, the emotional and financial costs to the Portland area are still undetermined. Children are still separated from their parents. Faith communities struggle to provide support to detained immigrants who are still awaiting resolution of the immigration court cases. It became clear that when the due process rights of our legal system are ignored in the context of a raid, we all suffer.
For example, in Postville, Iowa, the scene of another massive raid a year ago, the entire town is at the point of going bankrupt. There is an eerie abandoned quality to the town from the schools to the shuttered businesses. The town shrank by half. "It's like you're in an oven and there's no place to go and there's no timer to get you out," said former Postville-Mayor Robert Penrod, who, overwhelmed, resigned earlier this year.
Third, we learned that enforcement only – deportation – will solve nothing and is a waste of time and money. In Postville, the initial price tag for the raid was more than $5.2 million in government costs. In Portland, we are still assessing the financial costs of the Del Monte raid. The economic impact locally has been substantial. Nationally, the number of people detained annually is triple what it was just ten years ago, with an annual cost of $1.7 billion, yet the problems with our immigration system have not been resolved. Ultimately, deporting people does nothing to address the root cause of migration and it underscores the need for a reasonable, rationale solution.
Fourth, we learned that there is no “line” for immigrants to stand in. Saying there is a line implies everyone has a chance to get in line; this is not true for most immigrants and was not true for most if not all of the Del Monte raid victims.
Oregonians are pragmatic people. We overwhelmingly reject the notion that we should (or even that we can) deport 12 million people. Americans know that immigrants contribute to our society and we want a long-term solution.
We learned that Oregonians are also sensible about reforming the immigration system – Oregonians on all sides of the political spectrum. People prefer “a comprehensive approach that secures the border, cracks down on employers who hire illegal immigrants, and requires all illegal immigrants to register and meet certain requirements to become legal” over raids. They join Americans across the country 86% of who support comprehensive reform, with 58% strongly supporting it.
Most importantly, we learned that our community is strongest when we act together and work across divides to build relationships. Del Monte workers impacted in the raid and currently stuck in legal and financial limbo, have organized themselves and are partnering with local faith communities and organizations to educate about the need for just and humane immigration reform. Oregonians across the state have come forward to say that what happened at Del Monte was a tragedy and a waste and to assert that immigrants in Oregon are part of the fabric of our community.
http://www.ilw.com/articles/2009,0715-manning.shtm
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Op-Ed: Two Years and Four Thousand Arrests Later
by Stephen Manning, Sarah Loose, Alice Perry
CAUSA
June 12, 2009
A few hours after dawn, several white unmarked vans departed from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) headquarters in downtown Portland. Workers, most of who lived in North Portland, had left their homes earlier to arrive at the Fresh Del Monte food processing factory, donning their safety clothes and gear to begin another workday cutting and packaging fruit. By 10:30am, agents had spilled from the unmarked vans and surrounded the factory. It was June 12, 2007. The most ferocious immigration raid in Oregon and, at that time, in the United States was underway. By late afternoon, 168 individuals had been arrested.
Since then, ICE has arrested some 4,345 individuals in large scale raids. As the Portland community dealt with the raid and in communities across the country reacted, we learned many things about ICE, about immigration, about ourselves and, most importantly, about our communities.
First, we learned that the whole theory behind ICE’s large scale raid tactics was illegal. ICE’s mantra was that immigrants are criminals. A few months ago, in a case called Flores-Figueroa v. United States, the Supreme Court rejected that theory in a unanimous decision.
Second, we learned that raids like Del Monte have negative impacts beyond just the individuals detained. In Portland, teachers struggled to explain to children why their classmates had suddenly disappeared, even as many children including citizen children expressed fears that they too would be taken away. Massive amounts of energy and money went into dealing with raid’s aftermath. Two years later, the emotional and financial costs to the Portland area are still undetermined. Children are still separated from their parents. Faith communities struggle to provide support to detained immigrants who are still awaiting resolution of the immigration court cases. It became clear that when the due process rights of our legal system are ignored in the context of a raid, we all suffer.
For example, in Postville, Iowa, the scene of another massive raid a year ago, the entire town is at the point of going bankrupt. There is an eerie abandoned quality to the town from the schools to the shuttered businesses. The town shrank by half. "It's like you're in an oven and there's no place to go and there's no timer to get you out," said former Postville-Mayor Robert Penrod, who, overwhelmed, resigned earlier this year.
Third, we learned that enforcement only – deportation – will solve nothing and is a waste of time and money. In Postville, the initial price tag for the raid was more than $5.2 million in government costs. In Portland, we are still assessing the financial costs of the Del Monte raid. The economic impact locally has been substantial. Nationally, the number of people detained annually is triple what it was just ten years ago, with an annual cost of $1.7 billion, yet the problems with our immigration system have not been resolved. Ultimately, deporting people does nothing to address the root cause of migration and it underscores the need for a reasonable, rationale solution.
Fourth, we learned that there is no “line” for immigrants to stand in. Saying there is a line implies everyone has a chance to get in line; this is not true for most immigrants and was not true for most if not all of the Del Monte raid victims.
Oregonians are pragmatic people. We overwhelmingly reject the notion that we should (or even that we can) deport 12 million people. Americans know that immigrants contribute to our society and we want a long-term solution.
We learned that Oregonians are also sensible about reforming the immigration system –Oregonians on all sides of the political spectrum. People prefer “a comprehensive approach that secures the border, cracks down on employers who hire illegal immigrants, and requires all illegal immigrants to register and meet certain requirements to become legal” over raids. They join Americans across the country 86% of who support comprehensive reform, with 58% strongly supporting it.
Most importantly, we learned that our community is strongest when we act together and work across divides to build relationships. Del Monte workers impacted in the raid and currently stuck in legal and financial limbo, have organized themselves and are partnering with local faith communities and organizations to educate about the need for just and humane immigration reform. Oregonians across the state have come forward to say that what happened at Del Monte was a tragedy and a waste and to assert that immigrants in Oregon are part of the fabric of our community.
http://causaoregon.blogspot.com/2009/06/op-ed-two-years-and-four-thousand.html
CAUSA
June 12, 2009
A few hours after dawn, several white unmarked vans departed from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) headquarters in downtown Portland. Workers, most of who lived in North Portland, had left their homes earlier to arrive at the Fresh Del Monte food processing factory, donning their safety clothes and gear to begin another workday cutting and packaging fruit. By 10:30am, agents had spilled from the unmarked vans and surrounded the factory. It was June 12, 2007. The most ferocious immigration raid in Oregon and, at that time, in the United States was underway. By late afternoon, 168 individuals had been arrested.
Since then, ICE has arrested some 4,345 individuals in large scale raids. As the Portland community dealt with the raid and in communities across the country reacted, we learned many things about ICE, about immigration, about ourselves and, most importantly, about our communities.
First, we learned that the whole theory behind ICE’s large scale raid tactics was illegal. ICE’s mantra was that immigrants are criminals. A few months ago, in a case called Flores-Figueroa v. United States, the Supreme Court rejected that theory in a unanimous decision.
Second, we learned that raids like Del Monte have negative impacts beyond just the individuals detained. In Portland, teachers struggled to explain to children why their classmates had suddenly disappeared, even as many children including citizen children expressed fears that they too would be taken away. Massive amounts of energy and money went into dealing with raid’s aftermath. Two years later, the emotional and financial costs to the Portland area are still undetermined. Children are still separated from their parents. Faith communities struggle to provide support to detained immigrants who are still awaiting resolution of the immigration court cases. It became clear that when the due process rights of our legal system are ignored in the context of a raid, we all suffer.
For example, in Postville, Iowa, the scene of another massive raid a year ago, the entire town is at the point of going bankrupt. There is an eerie abandoned quality to the town from the schools to the shuttered businesses. The town shrank by half. "It's like you're in an oven and there's no place to go and there's no timer to get you out," said former Postville-Mayor Robert Penrod, who, overwhelmed, resigned earlier this year.
Third, we learned that enforcement only – deportation – will solve nothing and is a waste of time and money. In Postville, the initial price tag for the raid was more than $5.2 million in government costs. In Portland, we are still assessing the financial costs of the Del Monte raid. The economic impact locally has been substantial. Nationally, the number of people detained annually is triple what it was just ten years ago, with an annual cost of $1.7 billion, yet the problems with our immigration system have not been resolved. Ultimately, deporting people does nothing to address the root cause of migration and it underscores the need for a reasonable, rationale solution.
Fourth, we learned that there is no “line” for immigrants to stand in. Saying there is a line implies everyone has a chance to get in line; this is not true for most immigrants and was not true for most if not all of the Del Monte raid victims.
Oregonians are pragmatic people. We overwhelmingly reject the notion that we should (or even that we can) deport 12 million people. Americans know that immigrants contribute to our society and we want a long-term solution.
We learned that Oregonians are also sensible about reforming the immigration system –Oregonians on all sides of the political spectrum. People prefer “a comprehensive approach that secures the border, cracks down on employers who hire illegal immigrants, and requires all illegal immigrants to register and meet certain requirements to become legal” over raids. They join Americans across the country 86% of who support comprehensive reform, with 58% strongly supporting it.
Most importantly, we learned that our community is strongest when we act together and work across divides to build relationships. Del Monte workers impacted in the raid and currently stuck in legal and financial limbo, have organized themselves and are partnering with local faith communities and organizations to educate about the need for just and humane immigration reform. Oregonians across the state have come forward to say that what happened at Del Monte was a tragedy and a waste and to assert that immigrants in Oregon are part of the fabric of our community.
http://causaoregon.blogspot.com/2009/06/op-ed-two-years-and-four-thousand.html
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Women caught in Fresh Del Monte raid stuck in legal limbo
by Gosia Wozniacka
The Oregonian
June 12, 2009
A group of women caught in an immigration raid two years ago said Friday that they are still in legal limbo, unable to work or leave the country, with no financial means for their traumatized families to survive.
"We have been denied the right to work and support our families," said Elsa Martinez Torres, who was arrested in the raid and released to await her deportation hearing.
"Our children still have nightmares, and they internalize our fear and the uncertainty the future holds."
On June 12, 2007, federal agents rounded up 167 undocumented workers at Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc., a large North Portland food processing plant. Martinez and the other women who spoke at Friday's news conference were among 34 workers released from custody for humanitarian reasons because they were single mothers, sole caregivers of dependent children or suffered from a chronic medical condition.
Of the workers who were jailed at the federal Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, most have been deported or voluntarily left the United States.
The women -- about 20 remain in the Portland area today -- formed a support group and meet every other Friday to share their lives and figure out how to pay for food, rent, and other necessities.
While allowed to live in the community, the women cannot work. They are also not allowed to leave the country until their case is resolved. Martinez's court date: March 2010.
The women must present themselves to authorities twice a month and are allowed to leave their houses only during certain daylight hours. Federal agents pay them a surprise visit at home once a month, adding to the feelings of anxiety.
"Somebody knocks on my door and I get scared," said Martinez, 50. "This fear is going to stay with me, I can't forget."
Martinez worked at Fresh Del Monte for three years and was about to return to Mexico when she was swept up in the raid.
She said she left her home country and her six children 16 years ago because her life was in danger. She sent money to feed and educate the children -- the youngest is now 17 -- but they had to abandon school when she was caught in the raid.
Another woman, 42-year-old Abdias Cortez, said her three U.S.-born adolescent children have had a hard time accepting that their mother might be deported. Cortez has spent 20 years illegally living in the United States, and worked at Fresh Del Monte for about two years.
"My children can't concentrate on their studies, they keep asking what's going to happen, whether we will have to separate," Cortez said.
To survive, the women have organized tamale sales, hosted salsa dancing classes and shared donations from supporters. They also have participated in human rights and leadership workshops, given presentations in schools and churches, and attended regional immigration conferences.
"Through our group, we learned to conquer our fears, our terror, and the repression we live with," Martinez said.
The support group transformed the women, said Pedro Sosa, regional organizer with the American Friends Service Committee and the group's facilitator.
"They have had the initiative to not stand by with their hands crossed," Sosa said. "They have learned their rights, they have become human-rights promoters. They have also educated others about the roots of immigration."
Another positive impact of the raid, said Portland immigration lawyer Siovhan Sheridan-Ayala, is that it brought the immigration crisis into the light and showed the inhumane side of the immigration system.
A civil lawsuit alleging dangerous conditions at Fresh Del Monte is pending, as is an ongoing criminal investigation by the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office.
The women and their supporters called for swift immigration reform that "treats immigrants as human beings rather than an exploitable work force," said Bob Brown of the Oregon New Sanctuary Movement.
"The raids have been an erroneous answer to solving the immigration problem," Sosa said. "They only separate families and damage the future of citizen children who will have to live in a country not their own."
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/06/women_caught_in_fresh_del_mont.html
The Oregonian
June 12, 2009
A group of women caught in an immigration raid two years ago said Friday that they are still in legal limbo, unable to work or leave the country, with no financial means for their traumatized families to survive.
"We have been denied the right to work and support our families," said Elsa Martinez Torres, who was arrested in the raid and released to await her deportation hearing.
"Our children still have nightmares, and they internalize our fear and the uncertainty the future holds."
On June 12, 2007, federal agents rounded up 167 undocumented workers at Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc., a large North Portland food processing plant. Martinez and the other women who spoke at Friday's news conference were among 34 workers released from custody for humanitarian reasons because they were single mothers, sole caregivers of dependent children or suffered from a chronic medical condition.
Of the workers who were jailed at the federal Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, most have been deported or voluntarily left the United States.
The women -- about 20 remain in the Portland area today -- formed a support group and meet every other Friday to share their lives and figure out how to pay for food, rent, and other necessities.
While allowed to live in the community, the women cannot work. They are also not allowed to leave the country until their case is resolved. Martinez's court date: March 2010.
The women must present themselves to authorities twice a month and are allowed to leave their houses only during certain daylight hours. Federal agents pay them a surprise visit at home once a month, adding to the feelings of anxiety.
"Somebody knocks on my door and I get scared," said Martinez, 50. "This fear is going to stay with me, I can't forget."
Martinez worked at Fresh Del Monte for three years and was about to return to Mexico when she was swept up in the raid.
She said she left her home country and her six children 16 years ago because her life was in danger. She sent money to feed and educate the children -- the youngest is now 17 -- but they had to abandon school when she was caught in the raid.
Another woman, 42-year-old Abdias Cortez, said her three U.S.-born adolescent children have had a hard time accepting that their mother might be deported. Cortez has spent 20 years illegally living in the United States, and worked at Fresh Del Monte for about two years.
"My children can't concentrate on their studies, they keep asking what's going to happen, whether we will have to separate," Cortez said.
To survive, the women have organized tamale sales, hosted salsa dancing classes and shared donations from supporters. They also have participated in human rights and leadership workshops, given presentations in schools and churches, and attended regional immigration conferences.
"Through our group, we learned to conquer our fears, our terror, and the repression we live with," Martinez said.
The support group transformed the women, said Pedro Sosa, regional organizer with the American Friends Service Committee and the group's facilitator.
"They have had the initiative to not stand by with their hands crossed," Sosa said. "They have learned their rights, they have become human-rights promoters. They have also educated others about the roots of immigration."
Another positive impact of the raid, said Portland immigration lawyer Siovhan Sheridan-Ayala, is that it brought the immigration crisis into the light and showed the inhumane side of the immigration system.
A civil lawsuit alleging dangerous conditions at Fresh Del Monte is pending, as is an ongoing criminal investigation by the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office.
The women and their supporters called for swift immigration reform that "treats immigrants as human beings rather than an exploitable work force," said Bob Brown of the Oregon New Sanctuary Movement.
"The raids have been an erroneous answer to solving the immigration problem," Sosa said. "They only separate families and damage the future of citizen children who will have to live in a country not their own."
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/06/women_caught_in_fresh_del_mont.html
Friday, July 11, 2008
Deportations up 40 percent in Pacific Northwest
By MANUEL VALDES
Associated Press Writer
Friday, July 11, 2008
Deportations from Washington, Oregon and Alaska have spiked by nearly 40 percent, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said Friday.
Immigration officials said the number of illegal aliens deported from those three states was 7,345 for the first nine months of the fiscal year. That number was up from 5,256 for the same period last year.
If the monthly average continues, the agency is on pace for a record-breaking year in the region, said Neil Clark, field office director for ICE detention and removal operations in Seattle.
Officials credit the increase in part to expansion of the Criminal Alien Program, in which immigration officers hone in on illegal aliens with criminal records and work with local law enforcement to process them. Those deportations increased by 26 percent in the same period. Of the more than 7,300 deported, more than 2,000 had prior criminal convictions.
"If you think of ICE's mission being public safety, the Criminal Alien Program really goes at the heart of that," agency spokeswoman Lori Dankers said.
The number of immigration officers visiting jails throughout the three states has increased.
"I think the message from this is if you're committing crime and you're foreign born, you're going to be found and be removed," Clark said.
Immigration investigations and work-site raids have also helped increase deportations, Clark added.
Last month, 32 illegal aliens were arrested at a manufacturing plant in Arlington, Wash., that supplies parts for commercial and military aircraft, including some made by Boeing. In 2007, 51 people were arrested at a United Parcel Service warehouse in Auburn, Wash., and more
than 165 workers were detained at a Del Monte processing plant in Portland, Ore.
The latest numbers reflect the continuing crackdown on illegal immigration by ICE and other federal agencies. Nationwide, the number of deportations in the period increased from 210,000 to more than 234,000, about an 11 percent increase.
Between June 2007 and June 2008, nearly 6,000 people have been added to the Criminal Alien Program in Washington. That means ICE will monitor those who are in jail and deport them after the sentence is served. More than 4,500 people were added in Oregon.
ICE officials said they did not have specific breakdowns of the number of aliens convicted of felonies rather than less-serious misdemeanors.
Pramila Jayapal, executive director of OneAmerica, a Seattle-based immigrant advocate group, said the increase in deportation makes her worry about the protection of due process rights.
A surge in deportations, Jayapal said, means more overcrowding and medical risks for illegal immigrants at detention centers.
"The whole thing requires a call on Congress to stop the surge of deportation until we can make sure we can protect the rights of people that are being picked up," Jayapal said.
OneAmerica is scheduled to release a report next week that alleges human rights have been violated at the detention center in Tacoma, which serves the Northwest.
Backers of illegal immigration enforcement said the increase in deportations is a good sign, but they add that more penalties are needed for employers who hire illegal immigrants.
"Immigration authorities are out looking, that serves as discouragement for people coming here in the first place," said Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform.
Nationally, Mexico remains the leading country of origin for deported illegal immigrants, followed by Honduras and Guatemala.
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
Associated Press Writer
Friday, July 11, 2008
Deportations from Washington, Oregon and Alaska have spiked by nearly 40 percent, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said Friday.
Immigration officials said the number of illegal aliens deported from those three states was 7,345 for the first nine months of the fiscal year. That number was up from 5,256 for the same period last year.
If the monthly average continues, the agency is on pace for a record-breaking year in the region, said Neil Clark, field office director for ICE detention and removal operations in Seattle.
Officials credit the increase in part to expansion of the Criminal Alien Program, in which immigration officers hone in on illegal aliens with criminal records and work with local law enforcement to process them. Those deportations increased by 26 percent in the same period. Of the more than 7,300 deported, more than 2,000 had prior criminal convictions.
"If you think of ICE's mission being public safety, the Criminal Alien Program really goes at the heart of that," agency spokeswoman Lori Dankers said.
The number of immigration officers visiting jails throughout the three states has increased.
"I think the message from this is if you're committing crime and you're foreign born, you're going to be found and be removed," Clark said.
Immigration investigations and work-site raids have also helped increase deportations, Clark added.
Last month, 32 illegal aliens were arrested at a manufacturing plant in Arlington, Wash., that supplies parts for commercial and military aircraft, including some made by Boeing. In 2007, 51 people were arrested at a United Parcel Service warehouse in Auburn, Wash., and more
than 165 workers were detained at a Del Monte processing plant in Portland, Ore.
The latest numbers reflect the continuing crackdown on illegal immigration by ICE and other federal agencies. Nationwide, the number of deportations in the period increased from 210,000 to more than 234,000, about an 11 percent increase.
Between June 2007 and June 2008, nearly 6,000 people have been added to the Criminal Alien Program in Washington. That means ICE will monitor those who are in jail and deport them after the sentence is served. More than 4,500 people were added in Oregon.
ICE officials said they did not have specific breakdowns of the number of aliens convicted of felonies rather than less-serious misdemeanors.
Pramila Jayapal, executive director of OneAmerica, a Seattle-based immigrant advocate group, said the increase in deportation makes her worry about the protection of due process rights.
A surge in deportations, Jayapal said, means more overcrowding and medical risks for illegal immigrants at detention centers.
"The whole thing requires a call on Congress to stop the surge of deportation until we can make sure we can protect the rights of people that are being picked up," Jayapal said.
OneAmerica is scheduled to release a report next week that alleges human rights have been violated at the detention center in Tacoma, which serves the Northwest.
Backers of illegal immigration enforcement said the increase in deportations is a good sign, but they add that more penalties are needed for employers who hire illegal immigrants.
"Immigration authorities are out looking, that serves as discouragement for people coming here in the first place," said Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform.
Nationally, Mexico remains the leading country of origin for deported illegal immigrants, followed by Honduras and Guatemala.
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
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