illegal aliens

MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee County is poised to take another step toward creating local identification cards to be issued to illegal immigrants, the homeless and others.

The Milwaukee County Health and Human Needs Committee on Wednesday is expected to take up a resolution that would establish a “Joint Task Force on Community Identification Cards.”

The proposed task force, represented by the county and the city of Milwaukee, would review and make recommendations related to the creation and issuance of community ID cards, according to the resolution’s sponsor Supervisor Peggy Romo West, vice chairwoman of the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors and chairwoman of the health committee.

Taxpayers would cover the cost of the ID program, at an initial cost of $300,000 — split evenly between the city and county.

Photo by Glendale Post 416

VOTER INTEGRITY BATTLE: Milwaukee County Supervisor Deanna Alexander was labeled a racist by her colleagues last month for offering an amendment that would require proposed Milwaukee County ID cards to clearly state that the IDs could not be used for voter registration.

Such an ID is needed, according to Romo West, because “many Milwaukee County residents face barriers to obtaining state identification and could benefit from a community identification card…”

That list includes, among others, low-income elderly, individuals with mental illness, survivors of domestic violence and formerly incarcerated individuals re-entering the community, according to the resolution.

It also includes the homeless, illegal immigrants and transgendered individuals.

The resolution notes “cities and counties across the nation are investing in local community identification programs in an effort to promote community unity and safeguard the health, safety, and welfare of all community members.”

That is a huge overstatement.

An analysis conducted by Milwaukee County’s deputy corporation counsel notes municipal ID programs exist in about a dozen municipalities and two counties, both in New Jersey.  Colleen Foley‘s August memo to County Supervisors Marina Dimitrijevic and Khalif Rainey asserts the New Jersey ID programs aren’t as expensive as the initiative contemplated in Milwaukee County.

“Monmouth County, New Jersey issues cards only to U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents. Mercer County, New Jersey’s program is actually issued by a local, nonprofit,” the attorney wrote.

Such IDs are “primarily intended to permit a person lacking photo identification to access municipal and private services,” like prescriptions, bank accounts, library cards, crime reporting, etc., but the cards are “multi-purpose,” Foley noted.

It’s the potential for open-ended access, particularly to illegal immigrants, that concerns fiscal watchers and voter integrity advocates.

“It’s obvious the long-term goal of this proposal is to subvert the voter ID law to give undocumented immigrants the opportunity to vote here in Wisconsin,” said state Rep. Joe Sanfelippo, R-New Berlin, and a former Milwaukee County Board member. “And to make matters worse, it appears the Milwaukee County Board is trying to use state funding to achieve their goal. We must keep a close eye on this as it proceeds so we can do whatever it takes to protect the integrity of the voting process in Wisconsin.”

Milwaukee County Supervisor Deanna Alexander last month urged the county’s Finance, Personnel and Audit committee to approve an amendment to the proposal that clearly states the cards would not be used for voting.

RELATED: Taxpayers to cover cost of Milwaukee County ID cards for illegal immigrants

Alexander was the only board member to vote in favor of the amendment.

The supervisor was basically called a bigot, a racist and compared to Donald Trump because of her voter integrity concerns.

“We need to be sure that we’re honest with people,” Alexander said in a statement in early November. “The authors of the legislation funding the Community ID program with taxpayer dollars have said publicly that the ID cards will not be used for voting. If this is true, then why are they so adamantly opposed to marking that right there on the cards?” she asked.

Foley, in her memo, wrote that while the federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 prohibits the awarding of state or local benefits to unlawfully present immigrants, she quickly added this disclaimer:

“The act does not bar states from delegating to administrative agencies or local government’s authority to determine whether unauthorized aliens may be granted certain benefits.”

Foley also wrote it “can be argued that municipal IDs are not a public benefit since they do not involve payments of assistance but rather access to services.”

But the money to set up the ID program and produce the cards would come from taxpayers.

The funding, which would be drawn from a state exempt computer aid fund, would be available as of Jan. 1, Alexander said.

“That money will be there for whatever task force is born,” she said. “In my opinion, it is going to be staffed with people who believe in illegal immigration and the transgender agenda,” not citizens who may oppose such cards.

Romo West asserts the IDs would “grant marginalized communities access to basic necessities that others take for granted…”

While it appears the ID program is on the fast track, Alexander said she will continue to fight for taxpayer and voter integrity protections.

“The county has a right and responsibility to ensure that if new ID cards it develops or funds for the benefit of the general public are not able to be used for something as essential to our way of life as voting, they should be clearly marked,” she told Wisconsin Watchdog last month. Read more about Milwaukee County a step closer to ID cards for illegal immigrants, others

Washington State asks U.S. Supreme Court to let Obama's immigration plan go forward. Oregon and California agrees.

Washington state Friday led a 15-state coalition in urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold President Barack Obama’s plan to legalize some 4.4 million illegal immigrants, arguing that immigration reform will benefit states by increasing tax revenue, enhancing public safety and reducing the demand for social services.

“Each day that these reforms are delayed harms people who want nothing more than to come out of the shadows and live and work legally to support their families,” Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a written statement. “This affects our friends, families, neighbors and our state as a whole.”

The Supreme Court is expected to decide in mid-January whether to hear an appeal filed by the U.S. Justice Department after the 5th Circuit of Appeals in November blocked two immigration programs ordered by Obama.

One would allow illegal immigrants with children who have legal status to apply for lawful standing. The other would offer legal standing to children 16 and younger who entered the country illegally.

Oregon and California are among the states that signed the brief written by the Washington Attorney General’s Office.

All three states have Democratic attorney generals and governors. Some 25 states, including the Republican-led Idaho, opposed the programs in a brief filed with the appeals court.

In Washington, approximately 105,000 illegal immigrants would be eligible for legal status, according to Ferguson’s brief.

The brief cites an analysis by the Center for American Progress that assumes undocumented workers who gain legal residency will earn more money. The additional income would increase Washington state tax collections by $57 million over five years, according to the analysis.

The brief also argues that residents are more likely to cooperate with police if they aren’t afraid contact with law enforcement will lead to deportation. Children in families split by deportation can end up in foster care, according to the brief.

A U.S. District Court judge in Texas in February blocked the immigration reforms from taking effect pending a trial on the plan’s legality.

Judge Andrew Hanen said the federal government likely violated the Administrative Procedures Act by not giving states a chance to comment before Obama issued the orders. States would be harmed by incurring the expense of issuing state-subsidized driver’s licenses to newly legalized residents, he ruled.

Oregon voters in 2014 overturned a state law that would have allowed illegal aliens to obtain a driver’s license.

Washington, California and 10 other states allow undocumented residents to have a license, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

The New Orleans-based Circuit Court upheld Hanen’s decision in a 2-1 ruling. If the programs were allowed to go forward, states would have a hard time returning to previous policies if the plan was ruled illegal at a trial, Judge Jerry Smith wrote.

Washington state submitted a brief to the Circuit Court, foreshadowing the arguments it has made to the Supreme Court.

The Circuit Court said lost tax revenue and public safety concerns were consequences of immigration laws and that it was up to Congress to debate those issues.

The other states joining Washington, Oregon and California are Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Virginia. The District of Columbia also signed the brief.
  Read more about Washington asks Supreme Court to OK Obama immigration plan

OLYMPIA — The state Attorney’s General Office has authored a friend-of-the-court brief to the U.S. Supreme Court supporting President Obama’s stalled immigration actions.

The brief comes after two lower courts this year upheld a legal challenge by Texas and other states questioning whether the president can make changes to the immigration system by executive authority.

Obama’s actions would protect from deportation an estimated 5 million people living in the United States illegally. If implemented, about 105,000 people in Washington could transition into the legal workforce, according to the brief.

“Each day that these reforms are delayed harms people who want nothing more than to come out of the shadows and live and work legally to support their families,” state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement. “This affects our friends, families, neighbors, and our state as a whole.”

Joining Washington on the brief were the attorneys general of California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Information from The Associated Press was included in this report. Joseph O'Sullivan: 360-236-8268 or josullivan@seattletimes.com. On Twitter @OlympiaJoe
  Read more about State AG files brief backing Obama immigration appeal

A man who was deported to Mexico last year after being convicted of multiple crimes is back in an Oregon prison.

Gustavo Isabel Vega, 23, was sentenced to 13 years in prison after being convicted of attempting to commit murder, delivering heroin and attempting to flee from a police officer.

Vega was admitted into Coffee Creek Correctional Facility on Tuesday. A representative from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was not able to answer questions Thursday about the possibility of Vega's being deported again.

Vega, whose last known address is in Boring, was arrested Jan. 31 following an Oregon State Police pursuit that ended near Turner.

At 12:15 a.m. Jan. 31, Oregon State Police Trooper Donald Rummer spotted a white Honda Civic going 85 mph on Interstate 5 near the Santiam Rest Stop on the border of Marion and Linn counties. Rummer pulled over the car, took Tracy Betancourt-Garcia's driver's license and noticed a man lying in the back of the car, according to a sentencing memorandum.

While running records checks in his patrol car, Rummer saw the car speed away. Rummer followed with his lights and siren on.

The Honda raced down I-5 at 120 mph and passed through light traffic. It swerved around a vehicle in the right-hand lane and then sharply cut in front of it to take an exit. Rummer chased the Honda onto country roads.

At one point the car quickly turned around and when his car's headlights illuminated the Honda's driver, Rummer noticed the man who was in the backseat was driving instead of Betancourt-Garcia, according to court records.

When Rummer tried to block the Honda's escape, the driver crashed into the patrol car and drove away. The chase continued back onto I-5 after the Honda drove the wrong way down the off ramp.

As the Honda slowed near the Turner exit, the driver leaned out of the car and fired two pistol shots at the trooper, according to court records.

The Honda took the Turner exit and the chase continued through the city. The Honda ran multiple stop signs without slowing down and reached speeds of 100 mph on rural roads.

Rummer rammed into the Honda to try to force it off the road. It spun into a ditch and stopped.

The driver, who was identified as Vega, got out of the car and reached down to his waistband. Trooper Nick Rhoades fired multiple shots at Vega until he turned away, raised his hands and ran away. None of the gunshots hit Vega, according to court records.

Rummer told Vega he would be shot if he didn't stop. He continued running so Rummer hit him with a stun gun. The second time he was hit with the stun gun, Vega fell in to a ditch...

Inside Vega's pants, law enforcement found more than 21 grams of heroin and a card with a hand-written statement that contained lyrics from a song glorifying drug trafficking, made derogatory comments about police and referenced a drug cartel and El Chapo Guzman, a powerful drug trafficker, according to court records.

Inside the car, detectives found more heroin, marijuana, drug paraphernalia, a cell phone, almost $3,000, three .22 caliber rounds and one .22 caliber shell casing.

Records from the cell phones found at the scene, which belonged to Vega and Betancourt-Garcia, led law enforcement officials to believe the couple had conducted numerous drug transactions...

Vega was charged with five felonies and two misdemeanors...

Betancourt-Garcia pleaded guilty to delivering heroin before Judge Dennis Graves Oct. 30. A possession of heroin charge was dismissed. She was sentenced to a year and four months in prison.

In a sentencing memorandum filed mid-November, prosecutors argued that Vega's multiple convictions over the past three years, his probation record, lack of remorse, willingness to commit crimes to avoid being arrested, disregard for the law and history of institutional problems meant he should receive a 15-year prison sentence.

Beginning in 2012 and before his arrest in 2015, Vega was convicted of first-degree burglary, third-degree theft, felon in possession of a firearm, two counts of possession of heroin (from different incidents) and attempt to elude police.

Court records show he was in a gang-related fight in Multnomah County jail in 2013. He was in a fight with an inmate at the Marion County jail in August 2015.

On May 15, 2014, he was deported to Mexico. He was back in the United States and arranging illegal drug deals by Jan. 23, 2015, according to court records.

He was on post-prison supervision when the police chase and shooting occurred. Read more about Drug dealer sentenced to 13 years in prison

Fox News is reporting that a group of aliens living illegally in the United States, Oregon specifically, is suing to overturn a ballot initiative in that state in which voters resoundingly rebuffed attempts to legislatively permit illegal aliens to obtain Oregon driver's licenses.

The basis? Discrimination. The plaintiffs allege that the ballot initiative, Measure 88, is unconstitutional "because it 'arbitrarily' denies driving privileges based on membership in a 'disfavored minority group.' It [the lawsuit] alleges Oregon voters were motivated by "animus toward persons from Mexico and Central America."

Fox quotes Norman Williams, associate dean for academic affairs at the Willamette University College of Law in Salem, as saying "that the plaintiffs' best argument is under the U.S. Constitution's Equal Protection Clause — and to claim Oregon has no rational basis for depriving undocumented Latin Americans of the ability to drive on Oregon's roads."

Mr. Williams goes on to say, "The U.S. Supreme Court has been clear that neither legislators nor voters may target a minority group because of their race or ethnicity."

He seems to be missing the point that it is immigration status, not race or ethnicity, that is key to the license denial. It is beyond argument that the state has a legitimate interest in deciding to whom it will issue driver's licenses; certainly Oregonian voters think so. So does the Federal Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which recently sustained a restraining order against the Obama administration issued by a U.S. District Court in Texas after that state (and 25 others) filed suit. Perhaps the good dean should read that opinion.

It is hard to imagine how a claim of unconstitutional discrimination could possibly be sustained. First, the ballot measure is facially neutral. It denies a license to anyone who is illegally in the country, without regard to race, ethnicity, or national origins. An overstayed Canadian of Northern European origins would be denied a license as surely as a mestizo from Mexico.

Second, individuals lawfully residing in the United States — including, obviously, people of Mexican or Central American origin — are all entitled to licenses without other qualifiers or caveats, so they are clearly unaffected. Surely if there were state-sanctioned "animus toward persons from Mexico and Central America" it would leak over into other provisions of the motor vehicle laws. But it clearly has not.

While it is true that Mexicans make up a large (but shrinking) portion of the population of aliens illegally in the United States — the Pew Research Center estimates 5.6 million in 2014, down from 6.4 million in 2009 — it is equally true that Mexicans represent the highest proportion of lawful resident aliens living in the United States as of 2013, according to the Department of Homeland Security. (See Table 4, here.)

The only thing one can reliably conclude from available statistics is that, by geographical circumstance (Mexico being the neighbor to our immediate south and the Central American countries just a bit further south), a large proportion of both our legal and our illegal populations will almost inevitably emanate from those countries. How this translates into a claim of discrimination is beyond me.

Let us watch and see how this mini-drama plays out. One suspects that the legal organizations representing the plaintiffs know full well that they are attempting to tilt the tables in the ongoing struggle between the states and the administration in the Fifth Circuit case, which the Justice Department has asked the Supreme Court to hear, by playing off of the same issues under the guise of discrimination.
  Read more about On Driver's Licenses for Illegal Aliens, States' Rights, and Discrimination

A group of illegal immigrants is suing the state of Oregon to overturn a voter-approved initiative that denied them driver’s licenses.

The lawsuit, brought by five illegal immigrants, comes after Oregonians passed Measure 88 last year with a strong two-thirds majority. Thirty-five of Oregon’s 36 counties voted against licenses for undocumented residents, as did every congressional district in the state, most of which are represented by Democrats.

But the lawsuit alleges Measure 88 is unconstitutional because it "arbitrarily" denies driving privileges based on membership in a "disfavored minority group." It alleges Oregon voters were motivated by "animus toward persons from Mexico and Central America."

Gustavo Recarde, who has worked construction and odd jobs in Portland and several states since sneaking into the United States in 1988, said a driver's license would help him feel more comfortable here and open doors.

"If an illegal [can] get a driver's license, it would be better because there's more opportunities to find a job as a driver," said Recarde, who is not part of the lawsuit. He said he believes race played a role in the vote.

But Cynthia Kendoll, president of Oregonians for Immigration Reform, said it's not the responsibility of Oregonians to make illegal immigrants comfortable or able to drive to jobs they don't legally have.

"They came here by choice, they weren't brought here against their will, and with those choices come hardships," she said.

Measure 88 was a public vote and a reaction to a law passed by the Oregon Legislature in 2013 and signed by then-Gov. John Kitzhaber, a Democrat, that would have given "driver's cards" to those who cannot prove they are in the U.S. legally.

The campaign to deny licenses won big despite being outspent 10-to-one.

"People were not swayed by their arguments that they deserve to have a driver's card so they could more easily get to their jobs," Kendoll said. "They're not supposed to be working here."

Kendoll said Oregonians were motivated by national security and drug-smuggling by Mexican cartels, not race. Those without papers have not gone through immigration checks, she said, and licenses make it easier to transport narcotics up and down the West Coast.

Norman Williams, associate dean for academic affairs at the Willamette University College of Law in Salem, said the plaintiffs’ best argument is under the U.S. Constitution's Equal Protection Clause – and to claim Oregon has no rational basis for depriving undocumented Latin Americans of the ability to drive on Oregon's roads.

"The U.S. Supreme Court has been clear that neither legislators nor voters may target a minority group because of their race or ethnicity," he said.

The plaintiffs -- five illegal immigrants identified only by their initials -- don't have to prove every Oregon voter was racially motivated, he said.

"They do have to establish there were enough voters who voted 'no' who were prompted to do so because of racial concerns, that could have tipped the balance," he said.

Still, Williams said they face an uphill battle.

"Federal judges are very hesitant to strike down state statutes on constitutional grounds," he said.

  Read more about Illegal immigrants sue Oregon over ballot measure denying licenses

Mr. Obama has been pleading with Congress to enact a more lenient policy toward illegal immigrants, but his efforts took a hit when tens of thousands of children and families surged across the border in the first half of 2014. The administration was caught off guard and had to scramble to try to gain a handle on matters.

At the height of the surge, some 10,000 children crossed per month. The number dropped to about 2,000 a month earlier this year but has risen steadily back to nearly 5,000 a month in September and October, and is on pace for about 5,000 in November.

The surge of illegal immigrant children puts a strain on other parts of government.

Under federal policy children from noncontiguous countries who are apprehended without being accompanied by parents are required to be processed and quickly released to the Department of Health and Human Services, which then tries to place them with relatives or in foster homes. Local school districts have struggled to accommodate the children, many of whom lag behind their age level in education and struggle with learning English.

More than 4,600 children were turned over to HHS in October, and November was headed even higher, with HHS predicting 4,900 children will be sent to its custody.

Once with families, the children usually skip their deportation hearings and disappear into the shadows with the 11 million other illegal immigrants already here.

The rising tide of illegal immigrants could also feed into the presidential campaign, where Republican hopeful Donald Trump has called for building more fencing.

Even Democratic front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton recently bragged about her 2006 vote in favor of erecting 700 miles of two-tier fencing along the southwest border.

That law was watered down a year later, at the behest of then-Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Texas Republican, and less than 40 miles of two-tier fencing has been built. Another 310 or so miles of single-tier fencing was built, along with 300 miles of vehicle barriers that allow people and animals to cross. Read more about Illegal immigrant children, non-Mexicans surge across border at record rate

A convicted heroin dealer deported earlier is facing additional charges and deportation after he was arrested during a drug deal Monday across the street from a private school in Milwaukie.

The drug deal did not involve anyone from the school...

Rafael Rivera-Rodriguez, 35, of Portland was arrested by members of the Clackamas County Interagency Task Force after an investigation in cooperation with the Milwaukie Police Department. During the bust, police seized about three ounces of heroin, with a street value of $7,500.

Rivera-Rodriguez subsequently was arraigned in Clackamas County Circuit Court on charges of dealing heroin within 1,000 feet of a school, possessing heroin and violating probation from a previous conviction....

Sgt. Nathan Thompson, Clackamas County Sheriff's Office spokesman, said Rivera-Rodriguez initially gave investigators a phony name...

Thompson said Rivera-Rodriguez previously has been convicted in Multnomah County of possession and delivery of heroin. He also has been convicted on federal charges of illegally re-entering the country after he was deported. He recently was released from federal federal custody after serving a prison term for illegal re-entry.

Clackamas County authorities have contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which may bring additional federal charges against Rivera-Rodriguez.
  Read more about Convicted heroin dealer, deported once, busted again across the street from Milwaukie school