FAIR

Special Edition

Quick Reference Guide

Mid-Year Look At Immigration Policy from FAIR

Now that Congress has recessed, and isn’t expected to return until September 7th, and state legislative sessions are over, FAIR is providing you a handy summary of where the immigration policy issue presently stands. As always, we will monitor goings-on and keep you updated throughout the summer recess and beyond.

Number of Illegal Aliens

13 million

Number of Jobs Presently Held by Illegal Aliens

7 million

Annual National Cost of Illegal Immigration

$113 billion
The bulk of the costs – $84 billion – are absorbed by state and local governments

Hot Issues

Amnesty, DREAM Act and in-state tuition push for illegal aliens continues
E-Verify at state level, possibly a national bill
Continued dismantling of immigration enforcement by Obama administration using prosecutorial discretion to extend administrative amnesty to large classes of illegal aliens
Feds continue to stop state efforts to enforce immigration laws

Pending Enforcement Legislation

Mandatory E-Verify bill (H.R. 2164) awaiting mark-up hearing in House Judiciary Committee. Similar, but even tougher bill, in Senate (S. 1196)
“Hinder the Administration’s Legalization Temptation Act” or HALT Act (H.R. 2497) – awaiting mark-up hearing in House Judiciary. If passed, would stop the administration from further abusing its authority to grant relief to illegal aliens using backdoor methods.
“Security and Fairness Enhancement for America Act” or SAFE Act (H.R. 704) – passed by House Judiciary Committee. Would eliminate the “Diversity Visa” lottery
Keep Our Communities Safe Act of 2011 (H.R. 1932) – grants the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) the authority to detain dangerous aliens who have been ordered deported, but cannot be removed.
Secure Visas Act (H.R. 1741) designates authority to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to issue and revoke visas; authorizes DHS to conduct on-site reviews of visa applications in high-risk countries. Passed House Judiciary Committee.
Birthright Citizenship Act of 2011 (S. 723) – Senator Vitter’s statutory fix to the birthright citizenship issue.

Pending Amnesty Legislation

DREAM Act. New versions in both House and Senate (H.R. 1842, S. 952). Introduced in every session since 2001, recently failed to pass Senate in December 2010.
Comprehensive Immigration Reform (S. 1258) – amnesty introduced nearly every session, fails every time.

Miles of Fence Constructed

649 miles out of the 1,954 mile-long southern border is secured by fence
299 miles of vehicle barriers
350 miles of pedestrian fencing

Number of States Offering In-State Tuition for Illegal Aliens

Total of 14 states have passed in-state tuition for illegal aliens
Maryland DREAM Act offering in-state tuition for illegal aliens hits a snag. Successful petition by local activists means the Maryland law is blocked pending November 2012 referendum

Deportations Stats 2009

Criminal removals 131,840
Non-criminal removals 263,325
Total Removals 395,165

Deportation Stats 2010

Criminal removals 168,532
Non-criminal removals 218,701
Total Removals 387,242

Significant State Action

Alabama: passes omnibus enforcement bill and instantly hit with DOJ lawsuit.
Georgia: passes broad new immigration enforcement legislation but has parts of the new laws blocked. Provisions allowing police to determine the immigration status of suspects and punish people who knowingly transport and harbor illegal aliens were enjoined
Indiana: passes broad new immigration enforcement legislation. However, provisions allowing state and local police to arrest illegal aliens with a deportation order and barring the acceptance of consular ID cards are temporarily blocked.
North Carolina requires the use of E-Verify by private employers with 25 or more employees, public contractors and subcontractors, counties, municipalities and state agencies.
South Carolina enacts statewide E-Verify
Tennessee requires all public and private employers, including contractors and subcontractors, to use E-Verify
Utah attempts to create own guest worker program. (No DOJ intervention here!)

Mexican Border Violence

Record 24,374 homicides in 2010 – a 23% jump from 2009, largely attributed to drug cartel violence
1,200 National Guard troops deployed on border with Mexico

Supreme Court Decisions

U.S. Chamber of Commerce v. Whiting upheld right of states to require use of E-Verify.
Sends Hazleton, Penn. case back to Circuit Court following Whiting decision
Allows California law providing illegal alien in-state tuition to stand

Other

Administration Quietly Signs Cross-Border Trucking Agreement with Mexico

PRESS RELEASE

Secretary of State Kemp Announces Approval of Georgia’s Proof of Citizenship Requirement for New Voter Registration Applicants

Atlanta – Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp announced today that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) precleared Georgia’s law and related regulations which require new voter registration applicants to provide evidence of United States citizenship with their voter registration applications. The law is Act 143 of the 2009 Georgia General Assembly, also known as Senate Bill 86.

Secretary Kemp stated, “This law is a common sense enhancement to our voter registration process that will prevent non-citizens from voting in Georgia’s elections. Every ballot cast by a non-citizen erases a ballot cast by an eligible Georgia voter. The voter roll protections in Act 143, our photo ID requirement for in-person voting, and our triple-signature verification procedure for mail-in ballots make Georgia a national model for election security and integrity.”

Act 143 was signed into law by Governor Sonny Perdue on May 5, 2009 and requires those registering to vote to submit evidence of United States citizenship with their applications. There are many forms of acceptable identification, including a Georgia driver’s license number or identification card number, birth certificate, U.S. passport, U.S. naturalization documents or alien registration number, and a copy of a driver’s license or identification card from any state whose cards comply with the requirements of the federal REAL ID Act of 2005.

Background

Under federal law, Georgia must obtain federal preclearance of any change affecting voting by filing suit in federal court or by obtaining administrative preclearance through the DOJ. On November 15, 2010, the State filed suit against the DOJ in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to obtain preclearance of Act 143 and related regulations. Last week, after the DOJ indicated that it would consent to preclearance because the law did not have a discriminatory effect or purpose, the State submitted Act 143 and related regulations to the DOJ for administrative preclearance. After receiving that preclearance, the State dismissed its lawsuit.

In June 2010, the State filed a lawsuit against the DOJ to obtain preclearance of its voter verification process under the federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA). That process verifies information obtained from a voter registration applicant with information maintained by the Department of Drivers Services and Social Security Administration. At the time the State filed suit, Georgia was the only state in the nation barred from complying with the HAVA voter verification requirement. After the DOJ determined that the State’s HAVA verification process did not have a discriminatory purpose or effect, the State obtained administrative preclearance and dismissed the suit.

Brian Kemp has been Secretary of State since January, 2010. Among the office’s wide-ranging responsibilities, the Secretary of State is charged with conducting efficient and secure elections, the registration of corporations, and the regulation of securities and professional license holders. The office also oversees the Georgia Archives and the Capitol Museum.
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Secure Communities in Wisconsin

from ICE:

All Wisconsin counties to benefit from ICE strategy to use biometrics to identify and remove aliens convicted of a crime

MADISON, Wis. – On Tuesday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) began using a federal information-sharing capability in all Wisconsin counties that helps federal immigration officials use biometrics to identify aliens, both lawfully and unlawfully present in the United States, who are booked into local law enforcement’s custody for a crime. This capability is part of Secure Communities-ICE’s comprehensive strategy to improve and modernize the identification and removal of aliens convicted of a crime from the United States.

Previously, biometrics – fingerprints – taken of individuals charged with a crime and booked into custody were checked for criminal history information against the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS). Now, through enhanced information sharing between DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), biometrics submitted through the state to the FBI will be automatically checked against both the FBI criminal history records in IAFIS and the biometrics-based immigration records in DHS’s Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT).

If fingerprints match those of someone in DHS’ biometric system, the new automated process notifies ICE. ICE evaluates each case to determine the individual’s immigration status and takes appropriate enforcement action. This includes aliens who are in lawful status and those who are present without lawful authority. Once identified through fingerprint matching, ICE will respond with a priority placed on aliens convicted of the most serious crimes first – such as those with convictions for major drug offenses, murder, rape and kidnapping.

“The Secure Communities strategy provides ICE with an effective tool to identify criminal aliens in local custody,” said Secure Communities Assistant Director David Venturella. “Enhancing public safety is at the core of ICE’s mission. Our goal is to use biometric information sharing to remove criminal aliens, preventing them from being released back into the community, with little or no additional burden on our law enforcement partners.”

With the expansion of the biometric information-sharing capability statewide in Wisconsin’s 72 jurisdictions, ICE is using this capability in 969 jurisdictions in 37 states. By 2013, ICE plans to be able to respond nationwide to all fingerprint matches generated through IDENT/IAFIS interoperability.

“Brown County is fortunate to partner with ICE in an effort to accurately identify criminal illegal aliens in our community,” said Brown County Sheriff John Gossage. “Enhanced information sharing and increased communications with ICE will greatly aid in our effort to identify, apprehend and reduce the number of criminal illegal aliens within Brown County.”

Since ICE began using this enhanced information-sharing capability in October 2008, immigration officers have removed from the United States more than 54,500 aliens convicted of a crime. ICE does not regard aliens charged with, but not yet convicted of crimes, as “criminal aliens.” Instead, a “criminal alien” is an alien convicted of a crime. In accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, ICE continues to take action on aliens subject to removal as resources permit.

The IDENT system is maintained by DHS’s US-VISIT program and IAFIS is maintained by the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS).

“US-VISIT is proud to support ICE, helping provide decision makers with comprehensive, reliable information when and where they need it,” said US-VISIT Director Robert Mocny. “By enhancing the interoperability of DHS’s and the FBI’s biometric systems, we are able to give federal, state and local decision makers information that helps them better protect our communities and our nation.”

“Under this plan, ICE will be utilizing FBI system enhancements that allow improved information sharing at the state and local law enforcement level based on positive identification of incarcerated criminal aliens,” said Daniel D. Roberts, assistant director of the FBI’s CJIS Division. “Additionally, ICE and the FBI are working together to take advantage of the strong relationships already forged between the FBI and state and local law enforcement necessary to assist ICE in achieving its goals.”

For more information about how ICE is using biometrics to identify aliens convicted of a crime, visit www.ice.gov/secure_communities/.

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ICE PRESS RELEASE

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – On Tuesday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) began using a federal information sharing capability in eight additional Oklahoma counties that helps federal immigration officials use biometrics to identify aliens, both lawfully and unlawfully present in the United States, who are booked into local law enforcement’s custody for a crime. This capability is part of Secure Communities-ICE’s comprehensive strategy to improve and modernize the identification and removal of aliens convicted of a crime from the United States.

Previously, biometrics-fingerprints-taken of individuals charged with a crime and booked into custody were checked for criminal history information against the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS). Now, through enhanced information sharing between DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), biometrics submitted through the state to the FBI will be automatically checked against both the FBI criminal history records in IAFIS and the biometrics-based immigration records in DHS’s Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT).

If fingerprints match those of someone in DHS’ biometric system, the new automated process notifies ICE. ICE evaluates each case to determine the individual’s immigration status and takes appropriate enforcement action. This includes aliens who are in lawful status and those who are present without lawful authority. Once identified through fingerprint matching, ICE will respond with a priority placed on aliens convicted of the most serious crimes first-such as those with convictions for major drug offenses, murder, rape and kidnapping.

“The Secure Communities strategy provides ICE with an effective tool to identify criminal aliens in local custody,” said Secure Communities Assistant Director David Venturella. “Enhancing public safety is at the core of ICE’s mission. Our goal is to use biometric information sharing to remove criminal aliens, preventing them from being released back into the community, with little or no additional burden on our law enforcement partners.”

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Reps want immigration program to be expedited

by Jon Gillooly

The Marietta Daily Journal

November 30, 2010

MARIETTA – Immigration and Customs Enforcement has apparently declined a request by U.S. Reps. Phil Gingrey (R-Marietta), Tom Price (R-Roswell) and others to expedite the expansion in Georgia of a federal program that would transform the way illegal immigrants are identified and removed from the country.

“I’m disappointed because Georgia has the sixth largest population of illegal immigrants and a pretty darn high crime rate,” Gingrey said.

Anti-illegal immigration activist D.A. King of Marietta said he asked the congressmen to request ICE to speed up the program’s rollout in Georgia, a request they made to ICE officials in an Oct. 13 letter. But in a Nov. 17 response to Gingrey, Elliot Williams, ICE’s assistant director for congressional relations, indicates that ICE will not speed up the implementation of the fingerprinting program called Secure Communities.

Secure Communities modernizes the identification and removal process by using fingerprint-based biometric identification technology, prioritizing resources toward the greatest threats, such as the severity of the crime, and sharing information between law enforcement partners.

Started under the Bush Administration, the program is currently active in only eight Georgia counties – Cobb, Clayton, DeKalb, Gwinnett, Fulton, Muscogee, Hall and Whitfield. ICE notified the Cobb Sheriff’s Office in September that it would become involved in the program, Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Nancy Bodiford said.

Williams says in his letter that it won’t be until Fiscal Year 2011 that 48 of the 151 remaining counties in Georgia are activated and not until FY 2013 that the remaining counties will use the program.

“When considering when and where to deploy Secure Communities, in addition to considering high-risk jurisdictions, ICE must also consider its operational capacity,” Williams writes.

King said the reason for the delay is obviously due to ICE not being able to handle all the illegal immigrants it would find by an immediate rollout of the program.

“If you read between the lines, what they’re saying is they don’t know that they have the capacity of handling all the illegal aliens that they’d find because they’d have to house these people if they get them,” King said.

King said he was grateful to the congressmen for their efforts, but dismayed by the Obama Administration’s apparent failure to expedite a program that is already fully used in such states as Arizona.

“This is a detriment to public safety in Georgia,” King said. “It’s difficult to tell how many jobs it will cost or potentially how many American lives it will cost.”

Gingrey pointed to Hawaii, which has a population of illegal immigrants estimated at 10,000 compared to Georgia’s estimated 400,000 illegals, and yet Hawaii is using the program in its entirety, he said. Gingrey wondered why the federal government didn’t borrow the advice from bank robber Willie Sutton and “go where the money is.”

“We just don’t understand why it’s going to take so long to deploy this program nationwide,” Gingrey said. “…Even if you accept their explanation that they don’t have the manpower, why devote resources to an area with minimal need? Why don’t you go where the action is? I just think that’s too slow. They’re priorities on this are certainly not based where the problem is. To me, it seems a little boneheaded.”

Previously, biometrics-fingerprints taken of individuals charged with a crime and booked into custody were checked for criminal history information against the Department of Justice’s records. Now, through enhanced information sharing between the DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security, biometrics submitted through the state to the FBI are automatically checked against both the FBI criminal history records with the Department of Justice and the biometrics-based immigration records in Department of Homeland Security.

If fingerprints match those of someone in Department of Homeland Security’s database, the new automated process notifies ICE. ICE evaluates each case to determine the individual’s immigration status and takes appropriate enforcement action. This includes immigrants who are in lawful status and those who are present without lawful authority, according to its Web site. Once identified through fingerprint matching, ICE responds with a priority placed on immigrants convicted of the most serious crimes first, such as those with convictions for major drug offenses, murder, rape and kidnapping.

Since ICE began using the enhanced information sharing capability in October 2008, immigration officers have removed from the U.S. more than 50,600 immigrants convicted of a crime.

Cobb Sheriff Neil Warren said the Secure Communities program “is another resource that will enable our agency to accurately identify individuals booked into our facility. This initiative can help improve public safety by keeping dangerous offenders from being released in our community.”

Read more: The Marietta Daily Journal – Reps want immigration program to be expedited

Hall and Whitfield counties to benefit from ICE strategy to use biometrics to identify and remove aliens convicted of a crime

GAINESVILLE, Ga.-On Wednesday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) began using a federal information sharing capability in Hall and Whitfield counties that helps federal immigration officials use biometrics identify aliens, both lawfully and unlawfully present in the United States, who are booked into local law enforcement’s custody for a crime.

(Media-Newswire.com) – GAINESVILLE, Ga.-On Wednesday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) began using a federal information sharing capability in Hall and Whitfield counties that helps federal immigration officials use biometrics identify aliens, both lawfully and unlawfully present in the United States, who are booked into local law enforcement’s custody for a crime. This capability is part of Secure Communities-ICE’s comprehensive strategy to improve and modernize the identification and removal of aliens convicted of a crime from the United States.

Previously, biometrics — fingerprints — taken of individuals charged with a crime and booked into custody were checked for criminal history information against the Department of Justice’s ( DOJ ) Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System ( IAFIS ). Now, through enhanced information sharing between DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security ( DHS ), biometrics submitted through the state to the FBI will be automatically checked against both the FBI criminal history records in IAFIS and the biometrics-based immigration records in DHS’s Automated Biometric Identification System ( IDENT ).

If fingerprints match those of someone in DHS’ biometric system, the new automated process notifies ICE. ICE evaluates each case to determine the individual’s immigration status and takes appropriate enforcement action. This includes aliens who are in lawful status and those who are present without lawful authority. Once identified through fingerprint matching, ICE will respond with a priority placed on aliens convicted of the most serious crimes first-such as those with convictions for major drug offenses, murder, rape and kidnapping.

“The Secure Communities strategy provides ICE with an effective tool to identify criminal aliens in local custody,” said Secure Communities Assistant Director David Venturella. “Enhancing public safety is at the core of ICE’s mission. Our goal is to use biometric information sharing to remove criminal aliens, preventing them from being released back into the community, with little or no additional burden on our law enforcement partners.”

With the expansion of the biometric information sharing capability to Hall and Whitfield counties, ICE is using this capability in eight Georgia jurisdictions, including Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton, Gwinnett and Muscogee counties. Across the country, ICE is using this capability in 685 jurisdictions in 33 states. By 2013, ICE plans to be able to respond nationwide to all fingerprint matches generated through IDENT/IAFIS interoperability.

Since ICE began using this enhanced information sharing capability in October 2008, immigration officers have removed from the United States more than 46,800 aliens convicted of a crime. ICE does not regard aliens charged with, but not yet convicted of crimes, as “criminal aliens.” Instead, a “criminal alien” is an alien convicted of a crime. In accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, ICE continues to take action on aliens subject to removal as resources permit.

The IDENT system is maintained by DHS’s US-VISIT program and IAFIS is maintained by the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services ( CJIS ).

“US VISIT is proud to support ICE, helping provide decision makers with comprehensive, reliable information when and where they need it,” said US-VISIT Director Robert Mocny. “By enhancing the interoperability of DHS’s and the FBI’s biometric systems, we are able to give federal, state and local decision makers information that helps them better protect our communities and our nation.”

“Under this plan, ICE will be utilizing FBI system enhancements that allow improved information sharing at the state and local law enforcement level based on positive identification of incarcerated criminal aliens,” said Daniel D. Roberts, assistant director of the FBI’s CJIS Division. “Additionally, ICE and the FBI are working together to take advantage of the strong relationships already forged between the FBI and state and local law enforcement necessary to assist ICE in achieving its goals.”

For more information about how ICE is using biometrics to identify aliens convicted of a crime, visit www.ice.gov/secure_communities.

For the most up-to-date ICE information, sign up for ICE e-mail alerts. You may also visit us on Twitter and YouTube.

Secure Communities leads to removal of more than 5,500 convicted criminal aliens from LA County in first year

LOS ANGELES – Since its activation in Los Angeles County a year ago, the biometric information sharing capability deployed as part of the Secure Communities initiative has resulted in the identification and removal of more than 5,500 convicted criminal aliens from the United States who were encountered by local law enforcement in the county.

The information sharing capability, a key component of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) comprehensive strategy to enhance efforts to identify and remove convicted criminal aliens from the country, uses biometric identification to alert ICE when potentially removable aliens are arrested by local law enforcement.

Of the 5,585 aliens removed from Los Angeles County in the last year, nearly 2,500 are considered Level 1 offenders, which includes those convicted of serious or violent crimes, such murder, sexual assault and robbery. Another 2,540 are Level 2 offenders, which includes individuals with convictions for offenses such as arson, burglary and property crimes. As part of the Secure Communities strategy, ICE is prioritizing its enforcement efforts to ensure individuals who pose the greatest threat to public safety are removed first.

Regardless of the offenses for which individuals are initially booked, the Secure Communities screening may reveal more serious criminal histories. In one Los Angeles case, a fingerprint check of an individual with multiple aliases arrested on a warrant for failing to appear in court turned out to be a foreign national with a lengthy criminal history, including convictions for voluntary manslaughter and carrying a concealed weapon. In addition, the subject had been removed from the United States multiple times. The subject was convicted of illegal re-entry after removal and sentenced to 27 months in federal prison. Upon completion of his sentence, ICE will remove him from the United States.

Prior to the activation of Secure Communities, fingerprint-based biometric records taken of individuals charged with a crime and booked into custody were checked for criminal history information against the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS). Now, through enhanced information sharing between DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), fingerprint information submitted through the state to the FBI will be automatically checked against both the FBI criminal history records in IAFIS and the biometrics-based immigration records in DHS’s Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT).

If fingerprints match those of someone in DHS’s biometric system, the new automated process notifies ICE. ICE evaluates each case to determine the individual’s immigration status and takes appropriate immigration enforcement action. This includes aliens who are lawfully and unlawfully in the United States, but who have been arrested and booked into local law enforcement custody for a crime. Once identified through fingerprint matching, ICE prioritizes its response to focus on criminal aliens convicted of the most serious crimes first-such as those with convictions for major drug offenses, murder, rape and kidnapping. In accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, ICE continues to take action on aliens subject to removal as resources permit.

“Last year, ICE prevented thousands of convicted criminal aliens in Los Angeles County from being released back into the community,” said David Venturella, assistant director for Secure Communities. “Through the Secure Communities strategy, we’re increasing community safety by enforcing federal immigration law in a smart, effective way that targets the greatest threats for removal first.”

Los Angeles County is one of 28 jurisdictions in California that are currently benefiting from Secure Communities. The information sharing capability has helped ICE remove more than 12,400 criminal aliens arrested throughout the state. Nationwide, ICE is using the capability in 574 jurisdictions across 30 states, and it has helped ICE remove more than 37,900 criminal aliens from the country.

For more information, visit www.ice.gov/secure_communities.

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St. Louis City and County first in Missouri to benefit from ICE strategy to enhance the identification, removal of criminal aliens
Uses biometrics to prioritize immigration enforcement actions against convicted criminal aliens

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – On Tuesday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) began using a new biometric information sharing capability in St. Louis City and County that helps federal immigration officials identify aliens, both lawfully and unlawfully present in the United States, who are booked into local law enforcement’s custody for a crime.

This capability is part of Secure Communities – ICE’s comprehensive strategy to improve and modernize the identification and removal of criminal aliens from the United States.

Previously, fingerprint-based biometric records were taken of individuals charged with a crime and booked into custody and checked for criminal history information against the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS). Now, through enhanced information sharing between DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), fingerprint information submitted through the state to the FBI will be automatically checked against both the FBI criminal history records in IAFIS and the biometrics-based immigration records in DHS’s Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT).

If fingerprints match those of someone in DHS’s biometric system, the new automated process notifies ICE. ICE evaluates each case to determine the individual’s immigration status and takes appropriate enforcement action. This includes aliens who are in lawful status and those who are present without lawful authority. Once identified through fingerprint matching, ICE will respond with a priority placed on aliens convicted of the most serious offenses first-such as those with convictions for major drug offenses, murder, rape and kidnapping.

“The Secure Communities strategy provides ICE with an effective tool to identify criminal aliens in local custody,” said Secure Communities Executive Director David Venturella. “Enhancing public safety is at the core of ICE’s mission. Our goal is to use biometric information sharing to remove criminal aliens, preventing them from being released back into the community, with little or no additional burden on our law enforcement partners.”

With the expansion of the biometric information sharing capability to St. Louis City and County, ICE is using this capability in 632 jurisdictions in 32 states. By 2013, ICE plans to be able to respond nationwide to all fingerprint matches generated through IDENT/IAFIS interoperability.

Since ICE began using this enhanced information sharing capability in October 2008, immigration officers have removed from the United States more than 12,200 criminal aliens convicted of Level 1 crimes, such as murder, rape and kidnapping. Additionally, ICE has removed more than 29,500 criminal aliens convicted of Level 2 and 3 crimes, including burglary and serious property crimes, which account for the majority of crimes committed by aliens. ICE does not regard aliens charged with, but not yet convicted of crimes, as “criminal aliens.” Instead, a “criminal alien” is an alien convicted of a crime. In accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, ICE continues to take action on aliens subject to removal as resources permit.

The IDENT system is maintained by DHS’s US-VISIT program and IAFIS is maintained by the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS).

“US VISIT is proud to support ICE, helping provide decision makers with comprehensive, reliable information when and where they need it,” said US-VISIT Director Robert Mocny. “By enhancing the interoperability of DHS’s and the FBI’s biometric systems, we are able to give federal, state and local decision makers information that helps them better protect our communities and our nation.”

“Under this plan, ICE will be utilizing FBI system enhancements that allow improved information sharing at the state and local law enforcement level based on positive identification of incarcerated criminal aliens,” said Daniel D. Roberts, assistant director of the FBI’s CJIS Division. “Additionally, ICE and the FBI are working together to take advantage of the strong relationships already forged between the FBI and state and local law enforcement necessary to assist ICE in achieving its goals.”

For more information, visit www.ice.gov/secure_communities.

For the most up-to-date ICE information, sign up for ICE e-mail alerts. You may also visit us on Twitter and YouTube.

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OBAMA vs Arizona and the majority of America

Press Statement from angry Jerry Gonzalez who runs $am Zamarripa’s anti-enforcement GALEO

July 7, 2010 – ATLANTA, GA –

Jerry Gonzalez, Executive Director of GALEO, issued the following statement after learning of the U.S. DOJ lawsuit against the Arizona law SB1070 today:

“We applaud federal action against the discriminatory Arizona law SB1070. Immigration policy and enforcement falls squarely upon the federal government and the lawsuit will ensure to reassert federal authority. We echo the concerns and support for a preliminary injunction of the law in order to prevent its implementation.

Our nation should have one federal immigration policy. It does not make sense to have 50 different immigration laws across the states. While the U.S. Congress continues to abdicate its responsibility of enacting a uniform, coherent, enforceable and workable immigration policy, states should not step into that void as Arizona has.

The lawsuit filed today should give pause to the Gubernatorial candidates talking about enacting or pushing for such a law in Georgia. Clearly, Georgia would not want to bear the financial costs associated with the lawsuit, nor deal with the economic impact due to the loss of conventions and tourism. In addition, businesses based in Arizona are now being targeted for a national boycott. I am certain that the business community would eventually start to raise concerns about the Arizona law with some of our Georgia political leaders.

The real solution is for our U.S. Congress and President Obama to truly lead on this issue and develop a workable immigration reform policy that is just, humane, workable and will move our nation forward. In fact, there is growing support by the American public for a comprehensive immigration reform policy.

Now, we need action, not excuses, from our U.S. Congress on this pressing issue. The status quo perpetuates a broken immigration system. We need comprehensive immigration reform now.”

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GENERAL INFORMATION CONCERNING ALIEN STATUS

In accordance with the 14th amendment of the U.S. Constitution, any person born in and subject to the jurisdiction of the United States is a citizen of the U.S. at birth. U.S. citizenship may also be acquired through DERIVATION from the U.S. citizen parent when children are born abroad or through NATURALIZATION after meeting the necessary residency requirements. All persons not citizens or nationals of the U.S. are aliens, which generally are classified as PERMANENT RESIDENTS (“Immigrants”), NON-IMMIGRANTS, or UNDOCUMENTED ALIENS.

PERMANENT RESIDENT ALIENS enjoy almost all of the same rights as U.S. citizens. This status may be obtained through a number of different procedures and, unless taken away administratively, is granted for life. Aliens with permanent residency must carry evidence of their status. The INS no longer requires permanent residents to report their address annually.

NON-IMMIGRANT ALIENS are admitted to the U.S. for a temporary period of time and for a specific purpose, most often as a tourist. There are different categories of non-immigrants, and they are identified through letter/ number symbols (e.g. B-2). Non-immigrants are also required to present evidence of their lawful status in the U.S. to offices of the INS. This will usually consist of a passport containing a visa and an Arrival/Departure Record (INS Form I-94).

UNDOCUMENTED ALIENS are those who may have crossed the border illegally and/or been smuggled into the interior of the U.S., or those who have violated their non-immigrant status by accepting unauthorized employment, remaining longer than permitted, or committing some other violation. Some of these aliens purchase counterfeit documents or assume another person’s identity by using fraudulently obtained genuine documents. HERE