drugs

Statement from Secretary Kelly on recent ICE enforcement actions

WASHINGTON – Last week, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched a series of targeted enforcement operations across the country. These operations targeted public safety threats, such as convicted criminal aliens and gang members, as well as individuals who have violated our nation’s immigration laws, including those who illegally re-entered the country after being removed and immigration fugitives ordered removed by federal immigration judges.

ICE officers in the Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, San Antonio and New York City areas of responsibility arrested more than 680 individuals who pose a threat to public safety, border security or the integrity of our nation’s immigration system. Of those arrested, approximately 75 percent were criminal aliens, convicted of crimes including, but not limited to, homicide, aggravated sexual abuse, sexual assault of a minor, lewd and lascivious acts with a child, indecent liberties with a minor, drug trafficking, battery, assault, DUI and weapons charges.

ICE conducts these kind of targeted enforcement operations regularly and has for many years. The focus of these enforcement operations is consistent with the routine, targeted arrests carried out by ICE’s Fugitive Operations teams on a daily basis.

President Trump has been clear in affirming the critical mission of DHS in protecting the nation and directed our Department to focus on removing illegal aliens who have violated our immigration laws, with a specific focus on those who pose a threat to public safety, have been charged with criminal offenses, have committed immigration violations or have been deported and re-entered the country illegally.

I commend the heroic efforts of the dedicated officers of ICE’s Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations and those who provided assistance from ICE Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Marshals Service, as well as cooperating state and local law enforcement agencies. These professionals put their lives on the line to protect our communities and country. There is no greater calling than to serve and protect our nation – a mission that the men and women of ICE perform with professionalism and courage every single day.


  Read more about Statement from Secretary Kelly on recent ICE enforcement actions

Oregon Department of Corrections: Criminal Alien Report December 2016

The Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) December 1, 2016 Inmate Population Profile
indicated there were 14,717 inmates incarcerated in the DOC’s 14 prisons.

Data obtained from the DOC indicated that on December 1st there were 957 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the state’s prison system; more than one in every sixteen prisoners incarcerated by the state was a criminal alien, 6.50 percent of the total prison population.

Some background information, all 957 criminal aliens currently incarcerated in the DOC prison system were identified by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a federal law enforcement agency that is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. If an inmate is identified by ICE as being a criminal alien, at the federal law enforcement agency’s request, DOC officials will place an “ICE detainer” on the inmate. After the inmate completes his/her state sanction, prison officials will transfer custody of the inmate to ICE.

Using DOC Inmate Population Profiles and ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the total number inmates, the number of domestic and criminal alien inmates along with the percentage of them with ICE detainers incarcerated on December 1st in the state’s prisons.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Month/Day/Year

DOC Total Inmates

DOC Domestic Inmates

DOC Inmates W/ICE detainers

DOC % Inmates W/ICE detainers

December 1, 2016

14,717

13,760

957

6.50

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 December 16 and Inmate Population Profile 01 December 16.

Using DOC ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the number and percentage of criminal alien prisoners incarcerated on December 1st that were sent to prison from the state’s 36 counties.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

County

DOC Total Inmates W/ ICE Detainers

DOC % Inmates W/ICE Detainers

Marion

227

23.72%

Multnomah

206

21.53%

Washington

189

19.75%

Clackamas

75

7.84%

Lane

50

5.22%

Jackson

36

3.76%

Yamhill

22

2.30%

Umatilla

21

2.19%

Linn

16

1.67%

Polk

15

1.57%

Klamath

14

1.46%

Benton

13

1.36%

Malheur

12

1.25%

Deschutes

10

1.04%

Lincoln

8

0.84%

Jefferson

6

0.63%

Clatsop

5

0.52%

Coos

5

0.52%

Douglas

4

0.42%

Josephine

4

0.42%

Crook

3

0.31%

Tillamook

3

0.31%

Wasco

3

0.31%

Hood River

2

0.21%

Morrow

2

0.21%

Union

2

0.21%

Columbia

1

0.10%

Gilliam

1

0.10%

Lake

1

0.10%

OOS

1

0.10%

Baker

0

0.00%

Curry

0

0.00%

Grant

0

0.00%

Harney

0

0.00%

Sherman

0

0.00%

Wallowa

0

0.00%

Wheeler

0

0.00%

Total

957

100.00%

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 December 16.

Here are the ways Oregon residents were victimized by the 957 criminal aliens.

Using DOC ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the number and percentage of criminal alien prisoners incarcerated on December 1st by type of crime.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Crime

DOC Total Inmates W/ ICE Detainers

DOC % Inmates W/ICE Detainers

Sex Abuse

184

19.23%

Rape

171

17.87%

Homicide

136

14.21%

Drugs

113

11.81%

Sodomy

94

9.82%

Assault

78

8.15%

Robbery

54

5.64%

Kidnapping

25

2.61%

Theft

23

2.40%

Burglary

20

2.09%

Driving Offense

9

0.94%

Vehicle Theft

5

0.52%

Arson

0

0.00%

Forgery

0

0.00%

Escape

0

0.00%

Other / Combination

45

4.70%

Total

957

100.00%

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 December 16.

Using the DOC Inmate Population Profile and ICE detainer numbers from December 1st, the following table reveals the total number inmates by crime type, the number of domestic and criminal alien prisoners incarcerated by type of crime and the percentage of those crimes committed by criminal aliens.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Crime

DOC Total Inmates

DOC Domestic Inmates

DOC Inmates W/ICE Detainers

DOC % All Inmates W/ICE Detainers

Sex Abuse

1,771

1,587

184

10.39%

Rape

977

806

171

17.50%

Homicide

1,672

1,536

136

8.13%

Drugs

900

787

113

12.56%

Sodomy

1,026

932

94

9.16%

Assault

1,965

1,887

78

3.97%

Robbery

1,536

1.482

54

3.52%

Kidnapping

289

264

25

8.65%

Burglary

1,333

1,310

23

1.73%

Theft

1,142

1,122

20

1.75%

Driving Offense

251

242

9

3.59%

Vehicle Theft

447

442

5

1.12%

Arson

75

75

0

0.00%

Forgery

43

43

0

0.00%

Escape

39

39

0

0.00%

Other / Combination

1,251

1,206

45

3.60%

Total

14,717

13,760

957

 

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 December 16 and Inmate Population Profile 01 December 16.

Using DOC ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the self-declared countries of origin of the 957 criminal alien prisoners by number and percentage incarcerated on December 1st in the state’s prisons.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Country

DOC Total Inmates W/ ICE Detainers

DOC % Inmates W/ICE Detainers

Mexico

767

80.15%

Guatemala

19

1.99%

Cuba

15

1.57%

El Salvador

14

1.46%

Vietnam

13

1.36%

Honduras

12

1.25%

Ukraine

10

1.04%

Russia

9

0.94%

Federated States of Micronesia

6

0.63%

Cambodia

4

0.42%

Canada

4

0.42%

Laos

4

0.42%

Marshall Islands

4

0.42%

Philippines

4

0.42%

Other Countries

72

7.52%

Total

957

100.00%

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 December 16.

Beyond the DOC criminal alien incarceration numbers and incarceration percentages, per county and per crime type, or even country of origin, criminal aliens pose high economic cost on Oregonians.

An individual prisoner incarcerated in the DOC prison system costs the state approximately ($94.55) per day.

The DOC’s incarceration cost for its 957 criminal alien prison population is approximately ($90,484.35) per day, ($633,390.45) per week, and ($33,026,787.75) per year.

Even taking into account fiscal year 2016 U.S. Bureau of Justice Assistance, U.S. Department of Justice, State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP) award of $1,788,075.00, if the State of Oregon receives the same amount of SCAAP funding for fiscal year 2017, the cost to incarcerate 957 criminal aliens to the DOC will be at least ($31,238,712.75).

None of preceding cost estimates for the DOC to incarcerate the 957 criminal aliens includes the dollar amount for legal services (indigent defense), language interpreters, court costs, or victim assistance.

Bibliography

Oregon Department of Corrections Population Profile December 1, 2016:
http://www.oregon.gov/doc/RESRCH/docs/inmate_profile_201612.pdf

Oregon Department of Corrections Population Profile (unpublished MS Excel workbook) titled Incarcerated Criminal Aliens Report dated December 1, 2016.

Oregon Department of Corrections Issue Brief Quick Facts 53-DOC/GECO: 3/23/16:
http://www.oregon.gov/doc/OC/docs/pdf/IB-53-Quick%20Facts.pdf

U.S. Bureau of Justice Assistance, State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP), 2016 SCAAP award: https://www.bja.gov/funding/FY2016-SCAAP-Award-C.PDF Read more about Oregon Department of Corrections: Criminal Alien Report December 2016

Law enforcement or law UNenforcement?

The Multnomah County Sheriff's office is in an uproar because a Deputy Sheriff notified ICE about an illegal alien charged with domestic abuse.  So twisted is that office, they are "investigating" the actions of the Deputy, while defending the illegal alien.  Read more here.

If nothing else, I think the recent election has and should send a loud and clear message that tax paying citizens are sick and tired of our tax dollars being spent to defend and protect from deportation all illegal aliens.

The argument that cooperating with ICE will somehow cause the community not to trust law enforcement is bogus at best - and an outright lie to the citizens they are sworn to protect.


  Read more about Law enforcement or law UNenforcement?

A Multnomah County Sheriff’s Deputy Allegedly Aided Federal Agents in Courthouse Immigration Sting

On Jan. 25, Multnomah County Sheriff Mike Reese pledged his office wouldn't help President Donald Trump deport undocumented immigrants.

"I believe we have a responsibility to nurture a relationship of trust with everyone in our community," Reese said....

As early as Nov. 15, local officials pledged that Portland will remain a "sanctuary city" for undocumented immigrants...

...Reese won't have to contend only with Trump, but with people in his own employ.

In late December, one of Reese's deputies allegedly helped deliver an undocumented immigrant to agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

ICE agents apparently acted using information supplied by Deputy Larry Wenzel...

The Sheriff's Office has opened an internal affairs investigation into Wenzel's actions...

"What Oregon and Portland need to do now is stand up against the Trump administration," says Kasia Rutledge, an attorney with Metropolitan Public Defender Services...

The arrest of Rutledge's client came well before Trump took office Jan. 20...

As WW first reported Jan. 28, plainclothes federal agents wearing T-shirts and jeans have arrested several immigrants in the past two weeks at the Multnomah County Courthouse, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon. Defense attorneys and other witnesses tell WW that ICE agents have also demanded names from people who appear to be minorities at the courthouse, and have taken custody of some people on their wanted lists.

It's hard to be sure whether those arrests mark an increase from ICE's typical activity. An ICE spokeswoman confirmed five arrests at or near a courthouse this month...

Local lawyers say the raids suggest a federal immigration agency emboldened by Trump's election and executive orders—and acting in ways that local elected officials may find more effective than they imagined.

"If underneath them their subordinates are sending people to the [ICE] Tacoma Detention Center, there's a problem," defense attorney Chris O'Connor tells WW. "There's no actual plan for the day-to-day interactions."

Multnomah County officials, including Reese, County Chairwoman Deborah Kafoury and Presiding Multnomah County Circuit Judge Nan Waller, were alarmed enough to issue a joint statement Jan. 28.

"Anything that increases the fear of people accessing our courts is of grave concern," the statement said. "Now, they may be too afraid to show up."

The ICE arrests in Multnomah County come in the midst of nationwide uproar after Trump signed executive orders hostile to people born in other countries. Trump's orders included a Jan. 25 proposal to deny grant funding to cities that don't detain people for deportation, and a Jan. 27 travel ban blocking people from seven Muslim-majority nations from entering the United States.

In the wake of those orders, ICE and its sister agency, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, emerged as the enforcers of Trump's crackdown...

In Portland, ICE agents made 58 arrests in the month of January, five of them "at or near courthouses in Multnomah County," according to ICE Western regional spokeswoman Virginia Kice...

ICE officials said at least three of the people detained by ICE have significant criminal convictions, but they declined to provide names to verify the information.

Rutledge tells WW that Deputy Wenzel told her client, who faces domestic abuse charges and whose name she declined to provide, to come to the county's "close street supervision" office at the Multnomah County Justice Center on Southwest 3rd Avenue on Dec. 21 for a weekly pretrial check-in.

... the day before his appointment, she says, Wenzel called to tell him to come in specifically at 10 am—which is when the client and his mother found ICE agents waiting.

"When he and his mother came in, ICE was with the deputy, standing there behind the glass window," Rutledge tells WW.

She emailed Wenzel right away. "How did ICE know he was there?" Rutledge asked in an email.

"They asked when he would be here and I told them," Wenzel replied in an email obtained by WW.

After WW asked about Wenzel's actions, Reese issued a new memo to staff saying ICE "will be provided no greater information than is available to the public."...

"I don't think people have thought through the implications," Borg tells WW. "Because it's not just defendants. It's witnesses. It's family members.

"People are going to have to dust off their history books and see what the original definition of 'outlaw' meant. It was people who live outside the protection of the law."

WW staff writers Rachel Monahan and Nigel Jaquiss contributed reporting to this story.

  Read more about A Multnomah County Sheriff’s Deputy Allegedly Aided Federal Agents in Courthouse Immigration Sting

Oregon Department of Corrections: Criminal Alien Report November 2016

The Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) November 1, 2016 Inmate Population Profile indicated there were 14,731 inmates incarcerated in the DOC’s 14 prisons.

Data obtained from the DOC indicated that on November 1st there were 964 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the state’s prison system; more than one in every sixteen prisoners incarcerated by the state was a criminal alien, 6.54 percent of the total prison population.

Some background information, all 964 criminal aliens currently incarcerated in the DOC prison system were identified by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a federal law enforcement agency that is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. If an inmate is identified by ICE as being a criminal alien, at the federal law enforcement agency’s request, DOC officials will place an “ICE detainer” on the inmate. After the inmate completes his/her state sanction, prison officials will transfer custody of the inmate to ICE.

Using DOC Inmate Population Profiles and ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the total number inmates, the number of domestic and criminal alien inmates along with the percentage of them with ICE detainers incarcerated on November 1st in the state’s prisons.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Month/Day/Year

DOC Total Inmates

DOC Domestic Inmates

DOC Inmates W/ICE detainers

DOC % Inmates W/ICE detainers

November 1, 2016

14,731

13,767

964

6.54%

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 November 16 and Inmate Population Profile 01 November 16.

Using DOC ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the number and percentage of criminal alien prisoners incarcerated on November 1st that were sent to prison from the state’s 36 counties.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

County

DOC Total Inmates W/ ICE Detainers

DOC % Inmates W/ICE Detainers

Marion

233

24.17%

Multnomah

210

21.78%

Washington

188

19.50%

Clackamas

76

7.88%

Lane

49

5.08%

Jackson

35

3.63%

Umatilla

22

2.28%

Yamhill

22

2.28%

Linn

16

1.66%

Polk

14

1.45%

Benton

13

1.35%

Klamath

13

1.35%

Malheur

12

1.24%

Deschutes

10

1.04%

Lincoln

7

0.73%

Jefferson

6

0.62%

Clatsop

5

0.52%

Coos

5

0.52%

Josephine

5

0.52%

Douglas

4

0.41%

Crook

3

0.31%

Tillamook

3

0.31%

Wasco

3

0.31%

Hood River

2

0.21%

Morrow

2

0.21%

Union

2

0.21%

Columbia

1

0.10%

Gilliam

1

0.10%

Lake

1

0.10%

OOS

1

0.10%

Baker

0

0.00%

Curry

0

0.00%

Grant

0

0.00%

Harney

0

0.00%

Sherman

0

0.00%

Wallowa

0

0.00%

Wheeler

0

0.00%

Total

964

100.00%

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 November 16.

Here are the ways Oregon residents were victimized by the 964 criminal aliens.

Using DOC ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the number and percentage of criminal alien prisoners incarcerated on November 1st by type of crime.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Crime

DOC Total Inmates W/ ICE Detainers

DOC % Inmates W/ICE Detainers

Sex Abuse

188

19.50%

Rape

172

17.84%

Homicide

136

14.11%

Drugs

113

11.72%

Sodomy

94

9.75%

Assault

79

8.20%

Robbery

54

5.60%

Kidnapping

25

2.59%

Theft

23

2.39%

Burglary

17

1.76%

Driving Offense

9

0.93%

Vehicle Theft

5

0.52%

Arson

0

0.00%

Forgery

0

0.00%

Escape

0

0.00%

Other / Combination

49

5.08%

Total

964

100.00%

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 November 16.

Using the DOC Inmate Population Profile and ICE detainer numbers from November 1st, the following table reveals the total number inmates by crime type, the number of domestic and criminal alien prisoners incarcerated by type of crime and the percentage of those crimes committed by criminal aliens.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Crime

DOC Total Inmates

DOC Domestic Inmates

DOC Inmates W/ICE Detainers

DOC % All Inmates W/ICE Detainers

Sex Abuse

1,777

1,589

188

10.58%

Rape

976

804

172

17.62%

Homicide

1,673

1,537

136

8.13%

Drugs

916

803

113

12.34%

Sodomy

1,032

938

94

9.11%

Assault

1,953

1,874

79

4.05%

Robbery

1,544

1,490

54

3.50%

Kidnapping

292

267

25

8.56%

Burglary

1,335

1,312

23

1.72%

Theft

1,142

1,125

17

1.49%

Driving Offense

248

239

9

3.63%

Vehicle Theft

450

445

5

1.11%

Arson

78

78

0

0.00%

Forgery

39

39

0

0.00%

Escape

38

38

0

0.00%

Other / Combination

1,238

1,189

49

3.96%

Total

14,731

13,767

964

 

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 November 16 and Inmate Population Profile 01 November 16.

Using DOC ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the self-declared countries of origin of the 964 criminal alien prisoners by number and percentage incarcerated on November 1st in the state’s prisons.
 

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Country

DOC Total Inmates W/ ICE Detainers

DOC % Inmates W/ICE Detainers

Mexico

778

80.71%

Guatemala

19

1.97%

Cuba

15

1.56%

El Salvador

14

1.45%

Vietnam

12

1.24%

Honduras

11

1.14%

Ukraine

10

1.04%

Russia

9

0.93%

Federated States of Micronesia

6

0.62%

Cambodia

4

0.41%

Canada

4

0.41%

Laos

4

0.41%

Philippines

4

0.41%

Other Countries

74

7.68%

Total

964

100.00%

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 November 16.

Beyond the DOC criminal alien incarceration numbers and incarceration percentages, per county and per crime type, or even country of origin, criminal aliens pose high economic cost on Oregonians.

An individual prisoner incarcerated in the DOC prison system costs the state approximately ($94.55) per day.

The DOC’s incarceration cost for its 964 criminal alien prison population is approximately ($91,146.20) per day, ($638,023.40) per week, and ($33,268,363.00) per year.

Even taking into account fiscal year 2016 U.S. Bureau of Justice Assistance, U.S. Department of Justice, State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP) award of $1,788,075.00, if the State of Oregon receives the same amount of SCAAP funding for fiscal year 2017, the cost to incarcerate 964 criminal aliens to the DOC will be at least ($31,480,288.00).

None of preceding cost estimates for the DOC to incarcerate the 964 criminal aliens includes the dollar amount for legal services (indigent defense), language interpreters, court costs, or victim assistance.

Bibliography

Oregon Department of Corrections Population Profile November 1, 2016:
http://www.oregon.gov/doc/RESRCH/docs/inmate_profile_201611.pdf

Oregon Department of Corrections Population Profile (unpublished MS Excel workbook) titled Incarcerated Criminal Aliens Report dated November 1, 2016.

Oregon Department of Corrections Issue Brief Quick Facts 53-DOC/GECO: 3/23/16:
http://www.oregon.gov/doc/OC/docs/pdf/IB-53-Quick%20Facts.pdf

U.S. Bureau of Justice Assistance, State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP), 2016 SCAAP award: https://www.bja.gov/funding/FY2016-SCAAP-Award-C.PDF


  Read more about Oregon Department of Corrections: Criminal Alien Report November 2016

Criminal aliens 21.9 percent of federal prisoners


One of the detrimental impacts of having a significant foreign national population residing in the United States, be they legally or illegally present in the country, is crime.

The scope and impact of foreign national crime on the U.S. citizens and residents of this country is virtually going almost unreported in mainstream news sources online, on television or in hard-copy newspapers.

For example, information on foreign national crime has been readily available to any mainstream news source that has the ability to do a simple search on the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) inmates statistics website under the heading of inmate citizenship.

Here is what a search of the U.S. BOP website reveals on the number and percentage of criminal aliens in federal prisons on Oct. 29, 2016 (The most recent crime numbers available.).

Inmate Citizenship:

n México 27,815 inmates, 14.6 percent;

n Columbia 1,702 inmates, 0.9 percent;

n Dominican Republic 1,685 inmates, 0.9 percent;

n Cuba 1,228 inmates, 0.6 percent;

n Other / unknown countries 9,516 inmates, 5.0 percent;

n United States 149,194 inmates, 78.1 percent;

n Total Inmates 191,140 inmates.

Putting these preceding criminal alien inmate numbers and percentages into words:

On Oct. 29, there were 41,946 criminal alien inmates in the prison system. Alien inmates were 21.9 percent of the federal prison population; more than two in every 10 prisoners were criminal aliens.

The 27,815 Mexican nationals in the prison system were a staggering 66.3 percent, almost two thirds, of the criminal aliens in federal prisons.

An interesting fact, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons breaks down the federal prison population into 13 types of offenses. A significant fact, one of the top five offenses, the reason BOP inmates were incarcerated in federal prisons, was for immigration crimes. There were 15,580 inmates in the BOP prison system incarcerated for immigration crimes; they were 8.7 percent of the federal prison population.

The Fourth Estate, defined as “the public press,” needs to exercise due diligence in reporting on foreign national crime so that elected and nonelected governmental officials responsible for law enforcement at a national, state and local level will be held accountable in enforcing laws written to protect U.S. citizens and residents from criminal aliens that have and continue to invade our country. Read more about Criminal aliens 21.9 percent of federal prisoners

Venezuelan served sentence for drugs, now faces deportation after being arrested in Portland raid

SALEM — A Venezuelan man who is HIV positive and is in the United States legally was arrested in Portland in a pre-dawn raid because of a methamphetamine possession conviction, his immigration lawyer and a rights group said on Monday.

Luis Garcia, a nurse at a hospice center in Portland, now faces deportation to a country that is in an economic crisis, and where medicine is scarce.

“If he is deported to his native Venezuela, it will be a death sentence ... Venezuela will not provide him with the life-saving medications he needs to live with HIV,” the advocacy group Basic Rights Oregon said in a statement.

The group said Garcia was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Nov. 15...

Rose Richeson, spokeswoman for ICE’s Seattle office, said that based on Garcia’s felony conviction, the agency placed him in “removal proceedings” and has him in custody pending a decision by immigration courts.

N. David Shamloo, Garcia’s immigration attorney, said Garcia’s conviction for possessing methamphetamine made him subject to removal from the United States...

The lawyer said he is surprised that ICE didn’t grant Garcia supervised release, with electronic monitoring and weekly check-ins, as the agency could have done.

“He clearly had a job, no prior offenses, he had legal permanent residence status, and in fact this was a very minor offense,” Shamloo said, adding that Garcia had been put on probation for the offense....

Garcia entered the United States at age 17 on a tourist visa and attended nursing school in San Francisco, receiving a student visa, Basic Rights Oregon said. He works at a hospice center in Portland, the group said. Officials at the center declined to comment.

Earlier this month, another Oregonian — a man who was adopted from South Korea by Americans when he was 3 — was deported to his native country by ICE because of his criminal record....

On Nov. 10, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson said there were about 41,000 people in U.S. immigration detention facilities. Many are new arrivals. In October, 46,195 people were apprehended along America’s southwest border, compared with 39,501 in September and 37,048 in August, he said. Read more about Venezuelan served sentence for drugs, now faces deportation after being arrested in Portland raid

OBAMA ENDS AIR WATCH ON DRUGS, ILLEGALS

If you had any lingering doubt that Obama was on-purpose trying to destroy America and Americans, and flood us with criminals, drugs, Jihadi, illegals, violence and death, then this new information could maybe tarnish the luster on your day.

“No Borders,” is a bad idea. That is, unless you’re a deranged liberal. The ones I’ve talked to seem to think these crimes on the border—of allowing illegal entry, catch, and release; or don’t even catch—are all just perfectly ducky. “I welcome all brothers and sisters,” they have said to me; whatever that means, I don’t know.

Whose brother? Whose sister? Oh, wait…I know, the 30 or 50 other family members each illegal could personally bring in. And then THEIR brothers and sisters.

Yeah. Right. Over the cold, dead body of America.

Oh. and talking to a liberal about ANYthing political is like talking to an inmate of a psychiatric center...

Forget it. Forget them. But here’s what I was going to tell you:

From Breitbart.com (Nov. 18, 2016):

“The new orders by the Obama Administration to release Haitians caught at the border will only exacerbate the current situation since Mexican cartels are now coaching illegal aliens on how to game the U.S. immigration system, Border Patrol agents said.

“As Breitbart Texas reported, the current administration is moving to release hundreds of Haitians being held in detection centers in Arizona and California.The result of that release will be a new marketing tool for Mexican cartels and human smuggling organizations, said Hector Garza, National Border Patrol Council Local 2455 President during an exclusive interview with Breitbart Texas.

‘They are being told that all they have to do is request asylum and claim to be in fear and they will be released,’ said Garza who is a U.S. Border Patrol agent but is able to talk to the media in his capacity as local union president.

“In the case of Haitians, Breitbart Texas has reported on how they arrive to Mexico claiming to be African to receive a 20-day permit to pass through the country northward. With that permit, they have been arriving at U.S. international bridges requesting asylum.

“The move continues to overwhelm U.S. authorities as the number of asylum seekers continues to rise, adding more work to the already overwhelmed agents who, according to NBPC officials, [on purpose deprived by Obama] lack manpower, equipment, and help from Washington.”

And there’s this, also from Breitbart.com (Nov. 20, 2016):

“DHS officials quietly shutdown the military aerial support program known as Operation Phalanx…The DHS, which has a history of lying to the public about the actual situation along the Mexican border, asserted that illegal crossing have declined along the Texas-Mexico border…Breitbart Texas has reported extensively throughout the year about the increasing numbers of border crossing apprehensions…In the months leading up to the election of President-Elect Donald Trump, immigrants began flooding across the border at record numbers…Operation Phalanx utilized Nation Guard UH-72 Lakota helicopters specially equipped with night vision and other surveillance equipment…The shutdown of Operation Phalanx comes as [Obama’s personal, know-nothing sock puppet] Secretary Jeh Johnson’s term of service is about to come to an end. He will be replaced in January by a DHS Secretary selected by President-Elect Trump who has promised more aggressive action in securing the nation’s southern border….”

Jeh Johnson and Obama gone? Free at last! Free at last! Thank Father God Almighty for Donald Trump, because we are free at last!

That is…if Obama actually allows Trump to assume power; if he is not nullified by Obama’s Masters; if he is not harmed by the Marxist, Islamist, foreign Trillionaires and Rulers of Earth who finance and run this violent, sickening, entirely Democrat caper.



Car thief who left stolen dog to die in abandoned car gets 2 1/2 years in prison

A 35-year-old methamphetamine addict who stole a car with a dog inside, then later abandoned the car with the dog shut alive inside -- ultimately causing its death -- was sentenced to 2 ½ years in prison Wednesday.

Francisco Vincent Gonzalez's attorney had asked for probation and drug treatment, noting his clients' out-of-control drug problem....

"I tell the truth -- I am very sorry," Gonzalez said, as he turned to face Kona's owner, Bill Robbins, who was seated in the courtroom gallery.

But Multnomah County Circuit Judge Kelly Skye told Gonzalez that probation was unacceptable given the extreme nature of what he'd done. Kona was waiting for Robbins in the Hyundai Elantra on April 7 during a 5-minute stop outside Robbins' recreational marijuana business, Sweet Leaf Illusions, on Southeast 82nd Avenue.

Robbins said he had left the car's engine and air conditioning running. He said the doors were locked, but he wonders if Kona somehow unlocked them.

Video surveillance shows Gonzalez approaching the car and driving off. The car was found five days later on April 12, after neighbors noticed the smell of a decomposing body and someone called police about the suspicious car near Southeast 91st and Cooper Street.

Investigators believe Kona died of heat stroke. The high on the day he was stolen was an unseasonably warm 87, followed by another day in the 80s.

"The harm caused here was significantly greater than the average stolen car or, frankly, stolen pet," the judge said. "There were multiple opportunities ...for the defendant to let the dog go."...

"All he had to do was open the door and let the dog out, and he didn't," Skye, the judge, said. "And there's a significant consequence to that."...

In October, Gonzalez pleaded guilty to a host of charges -- including first-degree animal abuse, animal abandonment, unlawful use of a motor vehicle and meth possession. He also pleaded guilty to first-degree theft and no contest to identity theft because he drove off with more than $1,000 in cash and tried to use Robbins' ATM card to get more money, authorities say.

Gonzalez's defense attorney, Bill Walsh, had argued to the judge that his client should receive a sentence that treats him similarly to other defendants who've hurt animals. ...

After the hearing, Kona's owner -- Robbins -- said he felt like justice was served for Kona. But Robbins said he, his supporters and prosecutor Brian Davidson had to fight hard for it.

Robbins said he and his supporters have collected 38,500 signatures urging lawmakers to change the law by creating harsher penalties for people who hurt animals.

Robbins and his supporters also have created a "Kona Alert" Facebook group that encompasses a network of people who will help find stolen dogs..

Robbins said in the seven months since Kona's death, he's felt a profound loss....

"He used to look out the front window, put his head on my shoulder," Robbins said. "I miss him every day."

Gonzalez was born in Mexico. In court papers, Gonzalez's defense attorney said that Gonzalez ultimately will be deported.
  Read more about Car thief who left stolen dog to die in abandoned car gets 2 1/2 years in prison

Exploring our Northern border - the similarites and differences

I have traveled with Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) on three of the last five border tours they have organized to study the US / Mexico border. 

So, I can honestly say I was really looking forward, with great anticipation, to the latest trip, my fourth, to the US / Canadian border in September

CIS does an outstanding job putting together the best, most in-depth tours of our border.  Their dedication to providing a wide array of  "real life" representatives that live and work in the area that can tell us their own stories about the border and the issues they face on a daily basis make the trip invaluable.

Strategic stops are planned, allowing us to explore key locations along the route traveling east from Ottawa, traversing the US / Canada border exploring the New York, Vermont and Quebec border regions. 

The weather was near perfect and I'm fairly certain CIS most likely planned for that, as well.

CIS border tour groups are small, with just 9 guests and 3 CIS staff members traveling in two SUV's.  CIS takes great care to make certain that all our wordly needs are met - often going to extraordinary measures to accommodate us.

Visit the OFIR photo gallery to see a few of my photos - there will be more posted.

Upon our return, CIS Assistant Director, John Wahala provided an outstanding, detailed write up of our experience - complete with some of his photos!

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Diligence on a Changing Canadian Border

By John Wahala, October 13, 2016

The Center for Immigration Studies recently completed its sixth border tour. Heading north for the first time, we began our trip in Ottawa. From there we traveled east, crisscrossing nearly a thousand miles over the waterways and rolling hills of upstate New York and Vermont and into the lush forests of Quebec. The geography and relative calm of the region is a stark contrast to the rugged terrain and volatility of the U.S. Southwest. But behind the bucolic charm a host of factors are at work to make securing this part of the border just as challenging as the more trafficked parts.

Cooperation along the northern border is good. Every official we spoke with, currently serving or retired on either side of the border, praised the binational relationship that exists. The United States and Canada work together to apprehend people and illicit goods moving in both directions. Unlike enforcement efforts in the Southwest, where communication with Mexican counterparts is often strained or nonexistent, the relationship with Canada appears to be one of mutuality and respect.

Policies and procedures, however, have tightened since the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The casual nature of the relationship no longer exists. A retired border agent told us he used to routinely cross into Canada, where it was less populated and he could cover ground more quickly, before reentering the United States in pursuit of fugitives. No approval at a port of entry was necessary. Local residents tell their own stories about crossing back and forth for various reasons, unmolested. That does not happen any more.

During our excursion we crossed several times and each time we were questioned rigorously. Canadian border officials are thorough and have more information to work with than their predecessors. The United States and Canada now share the criminal histories of their respective citizens using various databases, such as those run by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Canadian Police Information Centre. The data is available to officers at every port of entry, who use it in making the decision whether or not to deny entry. That decision is based, in part, on how a past crime would be treated under Canadian law, which differs from the American legal system. Thousands of Americans have been refused admittance as a result of this information sharing, sometimes for infractions that happened decades ago.

The diligence we saw at the ports of entry was also evident along unpopulated stretches of the border, where only small stone markers separate the two countries. A few times when our group stopped to look around, agents came quickly to check on what we were doing. When they did not come, we were told by our guides that we were being monitored by sensors.

In one spot, a member of the Border Patrol told us they regularly interdict aliens attempting to cross into Canada. Typically these individuals are from various parts of Asia who are trying to reunite with family members. Two officers of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, who spoke with us on the Quebec side, said they had just intercepted a dozen Middle Easterners heading north from Vermont earlier that morning. They said they detain illegal aliens from all over the world, but that most are probably from Africa. Many are drawn to Canada because of its generous asylum policies.

The seeming effectiveness of law enforcement at this section of the border is aided by a lighter flow of illegal traffic. One agent told us that the young officers in the Border Patrol all want to be down south where the action is intense. He reflected on his own time in Calexico, where he was constantly being confronted with drug runners and human smugglers. Last year's apprehension data confirms this sentiment. Only 632 arrests were made in the Buffalo and Swanton sectors, which include the New York and Vermont portions of the border, compared to nearly 150,000 in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.

But patrolling the northern border is not without its challenges. The Swanton sector has the most drug interdictions on the northern border. It is home to the St. Regis Mohawk Indian Reservation — called Akwesasne in the native language. The reservation is small, with only a few thousand residents, but authorities say it creates a big hole in security. Questions of tribal sovereignty are complicated by the proximity to the international border and the unique geography of the region. Tension between tribal authorities, state and local officials, Border Patrol and other U.S. government agencies, and the Canadian government has long existed.

One flash point is the reservation's tax exemption on tobacco, which turned into a profitable opportunity for smugglers when governments began placing large excise taxes on cigarettes in the 1990's. It has been reported that tens of millions of cigarettes pass through the reservation each year, many headed into Canada. Agents are tasked with stopping this illicit flow on "a sprawling beat that includes countless coves, side roads and dimly lit cottage developments" that extends onto a narrow peninsula called the snye by locals. It is a small land mass that juts into the St. Lawrence River that is officially part of Quebec but is surrounded by water on three sides and the United States on the fourth. This makes law enforcement difficult. A retired agent told us it is rarely patrolled, making it a haven for people smugglers and others running from the law. He declined to take us into the snye, saying the last time he was there was the late 1980's and he was shot at.

In addition to contraband cigarettes, a steady stream of marijuana comes south into the United States through the reservation and harder narcotics, including a recent resurgence of heroin, and firearms are smuggled north into Canada. These endeavors rely on a dangerous criminal enterprise that works in tandem with people-smuggling networks. Aiding this enterprise is the dismal employment situation at Akwesasne, which helps lure many tribal members into this line of work. The situation is not unlike that of the Tohono O'odham Nation reservation on the Arizona border, which we visited during a previous tour. Further complicating the situation at Akwesasne is an internal tribal conflict. Ongoing friction between a traditional faction and a "warrior" sect creates a challenge to governance and how the reservation deals with outside authorities. The warrior sect is said to run the gaming casino and to be involved with illicit smuggling operations.

There are other issues on this seemingly tranquil stretch of the border. Over the past several years, Vermont's dairy industry — like much of the nation's agricultural sector — has transitioned their workforce to migrant laborers. The workers, most of whom are here illegally from Mexico and Central America, significantly cut operating expenses. The farmers echo the familiar refrain that they cannot find locals who are willing to work. That claim is plausible and understandable given their demands. One report said the migrants work 84 hours a week, 52 weeks a year. They are housed in bunkers or camps, tucked away from socialization with the outside world. This makes law enforcement efforts to intervene difficult. It is an unhealthy arrangement of alienation and exploitation that creates the predictable deleterious effects of increased crime and social dysfunction. Recently a Vermont state senator was indicted for a prostitution scheme involving migrant workers. Despite the problems of such an arrangement poses for everyone, the illicit use of migrant labor has the support of politicians at the highest levels of government who are beholden to powerful special interests. Fortunately, some farmers are beginning to recognize the harm and are mechanizing their operations with robots, which are more efficient and more profitable in the long term.

Another immigration scandal that has beset the region is a visa scam that bilked foreign investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars. In exchange for the promise of green cards, these individuals paid for two ski resorts and a biotechnology center that were supposed to create thousands of jobs and revitalize impoverished northern Vermont. The developers took the money, but the projects were never realized. We stopped by the site of one of these projects in Newport, which now sits as a large hole in the ground, and talked to a local about the fallout of the scam. Our colleague David North has written extensively on this and other such visa scams that have occurred in the EB-5 investor program, which have beset various places across the country.

The problems on this part of the northern border are different in scale from those on the southern border, but not in kind. A predictable mix of inconvenience, vulnerability, crime, desperation, and exploitation can be found, like everywhere else there is an international boundary. It helps somewhat that both the United States and Canada are developed countries, largely eliminating the desire for established residents to cross illegally. But such calm is offset by the ease of overseas travel. People from around the world are now able to get to this section of the border and they are enticed to do so by the conflicting messages sent by both governments. This gets us to the most pressing border problem, which is not how to maintain order, but determining whether it is still politically desirable to do so.

Western elites are experiencing a crisis of confidence that is challenging long-held notions of national sovereignty. The political class has largely abandoned the conviction that immigration should be restricted. The view that there ought to be open borders now predominates among leaders in both the Republican and Democratic parties, much to the chagrin of the American people. The same dynamic is present in Canada. There was a sense of resignation from the two RCMP officers we spoke to in Quebec when they explained that most of the illegal crossers they detain get asylum. It was the same resignation that was voiced by two Border Patrol agents who told us that morale is terrible, turnover is high, and their superiors will not even furnish them with adequate equipment. And it was the same resignation we heard from a retired agent who succinctly put it: "We enforce the law, but there are no consequences." The Obama administration has resettled hundreds of thousands of illegal crossers into the United States — in direct violation of the law and the mission of the Border Patrol — in just the past couple years.

Former Canadian Ambassador James Bissett, a high ranking immigration official for more than three decades who served as an aide to prime ministers, met us for dinner one night in Ottawa. After sharing a detailed history of immigration to his country, he discussed the transformation that is now underway. Since 1985, Canada's population has increased by 40 percent — the largest increase of any developed country. Certain areas have experienced near total demographic replacement. The current Liberal Party government of Justin Trudeau, along with nearly all of the political opposition, has embraced this transformation, pledging to admit record numbers of immigrants, including tens of thousands from the Middle East. Next month they will waive visa restrictions for Mexico, creating a host of challenges for themselves and the United States. There is concern, even among some sympathetic members of the elite, that such policies are endangering the security of the region.

Mass immigration is no longer a distinctly American phenomenon. It has become the de facto position of Canada and many other western governments. The leaders who are pushing it see the free movement of people as a human right, one that is part of an emerging globalist perspective on governance. That perspective is directly at odds with the worldview of most of their citizens, creating a bitter conflict that goes right to the heart of what it means to have the consent of the governed. The rise of nationalism in Europe, the British decision to leave the European Union, and the populist surge of Donald Trump are all recent manifestations of the peoples' simmering discontent. Meanwhile, law enforcement officials on both sides of the Canadian border quietly do their jobs, leaving the more philosophical questions to their political leaders, and the voters.


Learn more about CIS - visit the Center for Immigration Studies website.

  Read more about Exploring our Northern border - the similarites and differences

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