enforcement

An Oregon judge is being investigated for allegedly helping an illegal immigrant evade Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in January, by letting the DWI suspect slip out through her own private entrance.

The Jan. 27 incident could land Judge Monica Herranz in serious trouble if she is shown to have helped Diddier Pacheco, 22, escape her Multnomah County courtroom as federal agents waited outside to deport him.

“This individual was allowed to leave that courtroom through a doorway that is not a public doorway, and which ultimately led to his ability to leave the courthouse undetected by ICE,” said U.S. Attorney Billy Williams.

“I found my client, told him that I’d seen ICE agents outside, that I had no way to know if they were there for him or not, but it was possible.”

- John Schlosser, attorney for Diddier Pacheco

Herranz is now under internal investigation by the Multnomah County Court Administration. She is cooperating with the probe, which is expected to be completed within a week.

The options for how Pacheco exited Herranz’ courtroom are limited, as there are only three doors. One is used by the Sheriff’s Department to bring inmates in and out. Another is used by the public and the last for the judge and courtroom staff to get back to their offices. It also leads to a staircase which goes to a first floor exit.

Pacheco’s attorney John Schlosser says he doesn’t know how his client left the courtroom. But he acknowledged both knew there were ICE agents inside the courthouse who might be there to arrest Pacheco.  He had passed several agents on his way into the courtroom.

“I found my client, told him that I’d seen ICE agents outside, that I had no way to know if they were there for him or not, but it was possible,” said Schlosser.

Federal law makes it a crime to “conceal, harbor or shield from detection” illegal immigrants. The U.S. Attorney in Portland decided not to prosecute after ICE officials told him they were opposed to an investigation of the judge. Instead, Williams met with most of the judges in the county and made it clear similar actions in the future would not be tolerated.

Herranz, a board member of the Oregon Hispanic Bar Association, is still working in the Multnomah County courts, but she could face internal discipline once the investigation is finished.

“I don’t want anything that in the eyes of the public undermines the integrity and the neutrality of the justice system being done,” said Presiding Judge Nan Waller.

Lars Larson, a nationally syndicated conservative talk show host based in Portland thinks Herranz should be finished on the bench and even lose her license to practice law.

“I think the judge broke the law,” said Larson, “I think as a lawyer, her ticket should probably be punched. I think she helped a criminal escape.”

Herranz declined a request by Fox News for a comment. Pacheco was caught by ICE agents outside the same courthouse two weeks later following another hearing. He’s been taken to an ICE detention facility in New Mexico where he’s awaiting deportation. Read more about Oregon judge accused of helping illegal immigrant escape under investigation

Despite media reports of a massive crackdown by President Trump on illegal immigrants, just a tiny percentage of the nearly 1 million on the government's deportation list have been arrested...

The 680 seized in recent sweeps by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement agents...

....moves to deport illegals, many with criminal records and slapped with "final orders of removal" after exhausting their court appeals.

He said that ICE has custody of just 11,006, or 1 percent, of the 950,062 ordered deported.

"As of May 21, 2016, there were 950,062 aliens with final orders of removal on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) national docket. Of those aliens, 939,056 were on ICE's non-detained docket and 11,006 were on ICE's detained docket," said Homan's answer to questions from Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley.

As it moves to find those not detained, ICE is beefing up its force, hiring up to 15,000.

There are an estimated 3 million illegal immigrants with criminal records in addition to their illegal status and the administration has said it will make them a priority for removal...

Immigration experts said that sanctuary cities are mostly to blame for the huge number of illegal immigrants with deportation orders who are not in custody.

"The question I think people should be asking is, 'Why are there so many criminal aliens who are at large?'" said Jessica M. Vaughan, director of policy studies for the Center for Immigration Studies.

"Why does ICE have to take to the streets to find these people? One reason is because so many criminal aliens have been released by sanctuary policies. If you look at the list of cities where these operations took place, many of them are sanctuaries. ICE has to do these kinds of operations when they are prevented from arresting criminal aliens while they are in jail," she added.

She explained that those slated for removal from the United States are often simply floating in cities, either not required to check in with authorities or ignoring that requirement.

In Homan's answers to Grassley, he said that "Individuals on ICE's non-detained docket with final orders of removal are released under conditions designed to ensure their compliance with their immigration obligations."

Vaughan translated: "11,006 of the 950,062 aliens with final orders of removal (exhausted all appeals) were in detention. The rest were at large. The 'conditions' they mention usually means 'own recognizance,' or no conditions, or bond, no reporting requirements, or calling an automated phone line to check in, or wearing an ankle bracelet, or checking in with an ICE officer in person – in that order of frequency, as far as I know. In other words, most of these people were just in the wind." Read more about ICE: 950,000 illegals with 'removal orders' free, raids get just a sliver

For over a decade, we’ve been engaged in a battle for a secure driver’s license in Oregon. Much of the drama has been self-inflicted and it’s about time we get with the program and move on.

It started in 2005 when Congress passed, and President Bush signed the Real ID act, which calls for a more secure driver’s license. We don’t have a national ID card, so state-issued driver’s licenses are accepted by the federal government as identification when boarding a plane or entering a federal building.

States have different standards, and so Congress, in response to the 9/11 Commission, set uniform, secure, standards for states to apply. Driven by costs and other considerations, states are in various levels of compliance. For years, Homeland Security has been granting waivers to states, including Oregon, if they make progress. Now, the gig is up.

In 2007, Governor Kulongoski issued an executive order mandating comprehensive and meaningful identification to be issued a driver’s license, which brought Oregon many steps closer to compliance. This is why you have to practically bring your file cabinet down to the DMV to renew your driver’s license.

The main shortfall from full compliance with Real ID is that the DMV does not permanently retain an image of the documentation you provide. In eight years, when you have to renew again, you’ll have to bring the file cabinet back down to the DMV. Indeed, in 2009, the Legislature passed a law which forbids ODOT from expending any resources to comply with the Real ID act.

As the Kulongoski executive order made it harder for persons not legally in the country to get drivers licenses, a solution was sought in creating a “driver card” for those who could not prove legal status in the US. It passed both houses and was signed into law by Governor John Kitzhaber in a front porch ceremony on May 1, 2013. Since it did not have an emergency clause, it could be challenged by a citizens’ referendum, and it was. In an embarrassment to the legislative establishment, enough signatures were gathered (many by me) and it was put to the people in the form of Measure 88 in 2014. It was repealed by a 2:1 margin and a majority in 35 of Oregon’s 36 counties.

So, as our waiver runs out, I and Senator Chuck Thomsen (R-Hood River) have separately introduced bills in the House and the Senate to repeal the prohibition on ODOT and allow the agency to comply with Real ID. This makes even more sense in light of the fact that the DMV has embarked on a $90 million software upgrade, and this could easily be included. Another bill introduced in the Senate by Senator Bill Hansell (R-Athena) creates a new, “Star ID” which complies with Real ID but leaves in place the current driver’s license as a less secure – and I think open to fraud — option.

Let’s not mess this up. Let’s have one Oregon Driver’s License, compliant with Real ID, and quit making me take my file cabinet down to the DMV each time I have to renew.

State Representative Mike Nearman (R-Independence) is on the board of directors of Oregonians for Immigration Reform and wants to make boarding a plane easier and more secure. Read more about Oregon’s Quest for Secure Driver’s Licenses

On January 1, 2017 Oregon’s Marion County had 232 of the 953 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) prison system; the county was first in foreign national crime with 24.34 percent of the criminal aliens in DOC prisons.

The following table reveals how Marion County residents were harmed or victimized by 232 criminal aliens incarcerated on January 1st in the DOC prison system with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) immigration detainers.
 

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 January 17.

This table reveals, using the DOC ICE detainer numbers from January 1st, the total number criminal alien inmates incarcerated in the DOC prison system by type of crime from all Oregon counties, the total number of criminal alien inmates from Marion County in DOC prisons by type of crime and the percentage of those alien inmates who were from the county by type of crime.
 

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 January 17.

The following table reveals the self-declared countries of origin of the majority of the 232 criminal aliens with ICE immigration detainers who have harmed or victimized the residents Marion County in the DOC prison system.
 

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 January 17.

Criminal aliens from 20 different countries have harmed or victimized the residents of Marion County.

David Olen Cross of Salem, Oregon writes on immigration issues and foreign national crime. He is a weekly guest on the Lars Larson Northwest Show. He can be reached at docfnc@yahoo.com or at http://docfnc.wordpress.com/ Read more about Oregon’s Marion County First in Foreign National Crime in January 2017

On January 1, 2017 Oregon’s Multnomah County had 201 of the 953 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) prison system; the county was second in foreign national crime with 21.09 percent of the criminal aliens in DOC prisons.

The following table reveals how Multnomah County residents were harmed or victimized by 201 criminal aliens incarcerated on January 1st in the DOC prison system with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) immigration detainers.
 

  Read more about Oregon’s Multnomah County Second in Foreign National Crime in January 2017

The Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) January 1, 2017 Inmate Population Profile indicated there were 14,617 inmates incarcerated in the DOC’s 14 prisons.

Data obtained from the DOC indicated that on January 1st there were 953 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, 6.52 percent of the total prison population.

Some background information, all 953 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 January 1st in the state’s prisons.
 

  Read more about Oregon Department of Corrections: Criminal Alien Report January 2017

...Gov. Kate Brown, Senate Majority Leader Ginny Burdick, D-Portland, House Majority Leader Jennifer Williamson, D-Portland, and House Speaker Tina Kotek, D-Portland -- have all said they would not allow legislation rescinding Oregon's sanctuary state designation to progress. On the contrary, Brown has signed an executive order strengthening Oregon's laws shielding undocumented immigrants and ...

Williamson said in a statement Wednesday that she's "appalled" House Republicans would consider repealing the state's sanctuary designation.

"Oregon is better than this," she said. "This bill only serves to further divide and polarize our state, to scapegoat and threaten our immigrant populations."

House Bill 2917, sponsored by Esquivel, Nearman and Rep. Bill Post, R-Keizer, would require state agencies and contractors they hire to use the federal E-Verify system, which allows employers to check that prospective laborers are legally allowed to work in the United States. Read more about Oregon lawmakers push to repeal sanctuary state designation, make English official language

Several sheriffs across the country have spoken out against the idea that sanctuary city policies give illegal aliens more confidence to work with local law enforcement. Sanctuary city advocates claim that many illegal aliens will not report crimes, even if they are the victims, because they are afraid their illegal status will be discovered and they will be deported.

"I've not even seen anecdotal evidence," National Sheriffs' Association executive director, Jonathan Thompson, told the Washington Examiner. "The sad thing is that [this claim] suggests that people here are aware of criminal activity and are not reporting it. We have to give them specific dispensation so that they're reporting crimes?”

Sheriff Chuck Jenkins of Frederick County, Md., who was called last April to testify in a House of Representatives hearing on the effectiveness of immigration policies, said, "I believe the illegal alien community is smart enough to know that there are protections in place that if they are victims, not to put them into removal custody…They can request a U-visa — basically gives them asylum from any deportation or removal."

Sam Page, a sheriff in Rockingham County, N.C., for almost 20 years, said, "Some people in government at those levels want to be able to pick and choose what laws they enforce. If there are laws on the books, then we enforce the laws. And the legislature and Congress, they enact legislation. If they don't like the laws, then they need to change the laws, but you don't pick and choose which laws you enforce."

You can read the full article at The Washington Examiner. Read more about Sheriffs dismiss a major Democratic talking point on sanctuary cities

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