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Immigration groups sue over New Haven raids
WTNH Television ^
| 8/12/07
| Puppage
Posted on 08/12/2007 12:22:17 PM PDT by Puppage
New Haven (AP) _ Two immigrant advocacy groups are suing the federal government over the recent New Haven raids, in which more than 30 suspected illegal immigrants were arrested.
Junta for Progressive Action and Unidad Latina en Accion filed suit Friday in U.S. District Court against the Department of Homeland Security.
They want that agency to release records on how its Immigration and Custom Enforcement agents coordinated the raids which happened back in June.
City leaders and the immigrant-rights groups have questioned whether it was retaliation for New Haven's new ID card program. Federal officials have said the sweeps were planned weeks in advance. They say it had no connection to the new ID program, which is open to all New Haven residents including illegal immigrants.
Both groups have also raised money to help free the detainees on bond.
TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; US: Connecticut
KEYWORDS: aliens; immigrantlist; newhaven
1
posted on
08/12/2007 12:22:18 PM PDT
by
Puppage
To: Puppage
Someone should sue those who harbor illegal aliens using the RICO act under the following law:
Federal Immigration and Nationality Act
Section 8 USC 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv)(b)(iii) Recruitment and Employment of Illegal Aliens Encouraging and Harboring Illegal Aliens Enforcement RICO Citizen Recourse Tax Crimes Comment
Section 8 USC 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv)(b)(iii) "Any person who . . . encourages or induces an illegal alien to . . . reside . . . knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such . . . residence is . . . in violation of law, shall be punished as provided . . . for each illegal alien in respect to whom such a violation occurs . . . fined under title 18 . . . imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both."
Section 274 felonies under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, INA 274A(a)(1)(A):
A person (including a group of persons, business, organization, or local government) commits a federal felony when she or he:
· assists an illegal alien s/he should reasonably know is illegally in the U.S. or who lacks employment authorization, by transporting, sheltering, or assisting him or her to obtain employment, or · encourages that illegal alien to remain in the U.S. by referring him or her to an employer or by acting as employer or agent for an employer in any way, or · knowingly assists illegal aliens due to personal convictions. ·
Penalties upon conviction include criminal fines, imprisonment, and forfeiture of vehicles and real property used to commit the crime. Anyone employing or contracting with an illegal alien without verifying his or her work authorization status is guilty of a misdemeanor. Aliens and employers violating immigration laws are subject to arrest, detention, and seizure of their vehicles or property. In addition, individuals or entities who engage in racketeering enterprises that commit (or conspire to commit) immigration-related felonies are subject to private civil suits for treble damages and injunctive relief.
Recruitment and Employment of Illegal Aliens
It is unlawful to hire an alien, to recruit an alien, or to refer an illegal alien for a fee, knowing the illegal alien is unauthorized to work in the United States. It is equally unlawful to continue to employ an illegal alien knowing that the illegal alien is unauthorized to work.
It is unlawful to hire any individual for employment in the United States without complying with employment eligibility verification requirements. Requirements include examination of identity documents and completion of Form I-9 for every employee hired. Employers must retain all I-9s, and, with three days' advance notice, the forms must be made available for inspection. Employment includes any service or labor performed for any type of remuneration within the United States, with the exception of sporadic domestic service by an individual in a private home. "Day laborers" or other casual workers engaged in any compensated activity (with the above exception) are employees for purposes of immigration law. An employer includes an agent or anyone acting directly or indirectly in the interest of the employer. For purposes of verification of authorization to work, employer also means an independent contractor, or a contractor other than the person using the illegal alien labor.
The use of temporary or short-term contracts cannot be used to circumvent the employment authorization verification requirements. If employment is to be for less than the usual three days allowed for completing the I-9 Form requirement, the form must be completed immediately at the time of hire.
An employer has constructive knowledge that an employee is an illegal unauthorized worker if a reasonable person would infer it from the facts. Constructive knowledge constituting a violation of federal law has been found where (1) the I-9 employment eligibility form has not been properly completed, including supporting documentation, (2) the employer has learned from other individuals, media reports, or any source of information available to the employer that the alien is unauthorized to work, or (3) the employer acts with reckless disregard for the legal consequences of permitting a third party to provide or introduce an illegal alien into the employer's work force. Knowledge cannot be inferred solely on the basis of an individual's accent or foreign appearance.
Actual specific knowledge is not required. For example, a newspaper article stating that ballrooms depend on an illegal alien work force of dance hostesses was held by the courts to be a reasonable ground for suspicion that unlawful conduct had occurred.
It is illegal for nonprofit or religious organizations to knowingly assist an employer to violate employment sanctions, regardless of claims that their convictions require them to assist illegal aliens. Harboring or aiding illegal aliens is not protected by the First Amendment. It is a felony to establish a commercial enterprise for the purpose of evading any provision of federal immigration law. Violators may be fined or imprisoned for up to five years.
Encouraging and Harboring Illegal Aliens
It is a violation of law for any person to conceal, harbor, or shield from detection in any place, including any building or means of transportation, any illegal alien who is in the United States in violation of law. Harboring means any conduct that tends to substantially facilitate an alien to remain in the U.S. illegally. The sheltering need not be clandestine, and harboring covers aliens arrested outdoors, as well as in a building. This provision includes harboring an alien who entered the U.S. legally but has since lost his legal status.
An employer can be convicted of the felony of harboring illegal aliens who are his employees if he takes actions in reckless disregard of their illegal status, such as ordering them to obtain false documents, altering records, obstructing INS inspections, or taking other actions that facilitate the alien's illegal employment. Any person who within any 12-month period hires ten or more individuals with actual knowledge that they are illegal aliens or unauthorized workers is guilty of felony harboring. It is also a felony to encourage or induce an alien to come to or reside in the U.S. knowing or recklessly disregarding the fact that the alien's entry or residence is in violation of the law. This crime applies to any person, rather than just employers of illegal aliens. Courts have ruled that "encouraging" includes counseling illegal aliens to continue working in the U.S. or assisting them to complete applications with false statements or obvious errors. The fact that the alien is a refugee fleeing persecution is not a defense to this felony, since U.S. law and the UN Protocol on Refugees both require that a refugee must report to immigration authorities without delay upon entry to the U.S.
The penalty for felony harboring is a fine and imprisonment for up to five years. The penalty for felony alien smuggling is a fine and up to ten years' imprisonment. Where the crime causes serious bodily injury or places the life of any person in jeopardy, the penalty is a fine and up to twenty years' imprisonment. If the criminal smuggling or harboring results in the death of any person, the penalty can include life imprisonment. Convictions for aiding, abetting, or conspiracy to commit alien smuggling or harboring, carry the same penalties. Courts can impose consecutive prison sentences for each alien smuggled or harbored. A court may order a convicted smuggler to pay restitution if the illegal alien smuggled qualifies as a victim under the Victim and Witness Protection Act. Conspiracy to commit crimes of sheltering, harboring, or employing illegal aliens is a separate federal offense punishable by a fine of up to $10,000 or five years' imprisonment.
Enforcement
A person or entity having knowledge of a violation or potential violation of employer sanctions provisions may submit a signed written complaint to the INS office with jurisdiction over the business or residence of the potential violator, whether an employer, employee, or agent. The complaint must include the names and addresses of both the complainant and the violator, and detailed factual allegations, including date, time, and place of the potential violation, and the specific conduct alleged to be a violation of employer sanctions. By regulation, the INS will only investigate third-party complaints that have a reasonable probability of validity. Designated INS officers and employees, and all other officers whose duty it is to enforce criminal laws, may make an arrest for violation of smuggling or harboring illegal aliens.
State and local law enforcement officials have the general power to investigate and arrest violators of federal immigration statutes without prior INS knowledge or approval, as long as they are authorized to do so by state law. There is no extant federal limitation on this authority. The 1996 immigration control legislation passed by Congress was intended to encourage states and local agencies to participate in the process of enforcing federal immigration laws. Immigration officers and local law enforcement officers may detain an individual for a brief warrantless interrogation where circumstances create a reasonable suspicion that the individual is illegally present in the U.S. Specific facts constituting a reasonable suspicion include evasive, nervous, or erratic behavior; dress or speech indicating foreign citizenship; and presence in an area known to contain a concentration of illegal aliens. Hispanic appearance alone is not sufficient. Immigration officers and police must have a valid warrant or valid employer's consent to enter workplaces or residences. Any vehicle used to transport or harbor illegal aliens, or used as a substantial part of an activity that encourages illegal aliens to come to or reside in the U.S. may be seized by an immigration officer and is subject to forfeiture. The forfeiture power covers any conveyances used within the U.S.
RICO Citizen Recourse
Private persons and entities may initiate civil suits to obtain injunctions and treble damages against enterprises that conspire to or actually violate federal alien smuggling, harboring, or document fraud statutes, under the Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO). The pattern of racketeering activity is defined as commission of two or more of the listed crimes. A RICO enterprise can be any individual legal entity, or a group of individuals who are not a legal entity but are associated in fact, and can include nonprofit associations.
Tax Crimes
Employers who aid or abet the preparation of false tax returns by failing to pay income or Social Security taxes for illegal alien employees, or who knowingly make payments using false names or Social Security numbers, are subject to IRS criminal and civil sanctions. U.S. nationals who have suffered intentional discrimination because of citizenship or national origin by an employer with more than three employees may file a complaint within 180 days of the discriminatory act with the Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices, U.S. Department of Justice. In addition to the federal statutes summarized, state laws and local ordinances controlling fair labor practices, workers compensation, zoning, safe housing and rental property, nuisance, licensing, street vending, and solicitations by contractors may also apply to activities that involve illegal aliens.
Comment:
A comment and a published quote by Robert Gaffney, Attorney and County Executive of Suffolk County, LI, NY:
The statutory foundation of United States immigration law has always been the jurisdiction of the federal government, Congress and the federal courts. The preeminent laws concerning the employment of illegal aliens are found in the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. §~ 1101-1503), as amended by the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 CIRCA).
The law states it is a crime to assist an illegal alien who lacks employment authorization by referring him to an employer, or by acting as his or her employer, or as an agent for an employer. 8 U.S.C.S. § 1324a(a)(1)(A) (Lexis 1997). Furthermore, it is unlawful to hire an individual for employment without complying with the employment eligibility requirements for every person hired. 8 U.S.C.S. § 1324a(a)(l)(B) (Lexis 1997). Moreover, conduct tending substantially to facilitate illegal aliens remaining in the United States illegally, where there is knowledge or a reckless disregard of an illegal alien s unlawful status, is a crime, with escalating penalties, encompassed within the provisions of 1324. 8 U.S.C.S. § 1324(a)(l)(A)(iii) (Lexis 1997); United States v. Kim. 193 F-3d 567 (2d Cir. 1999), are considered employees for purposes of immigration law.
2
posted on
08/12/2007 12:26:18 PM PDT
by
Man50D
(Fair Tax, you earn it, you keep it!)
To: Puppage
What the hell times do we live in? So now we have to ask WHY is it authorities are enforcing the law?
Furthermore, the fact that such groups operate in broad day light and sue the gvmnt and raise money and are hailed by many in the country as moral paragons tells me, yet again, that our side is still losing the crucial PR war.
3
posted on
08/12/2007 12:29:22 PM PDT
by
beckaz
(Dump Gonzales Yesterday, and Chertoff too.)
To: Man50D
4
posted on
08/12/2007 12:30:44 PM PDT
by
Guenevere
(Duncan Hunter for President 2008!!!)
To: beckaz
>What the hell times do we live in? So now we have to ask WHY is it authorities are enforcing the law?<
I was thinking the same thing!
5
posted on
08/12/2007 12:32:50 PM PDT
by
B4Ranch
( "Freedom is not free, but don't worry the U.S. Marine Corps will pay most of your share.")
To: Puppage
This is an intimidation suit.
They want the public to be scared.
NEWSFLASH, confidential informants have a long history of being protected.
6
posted on
08/12/2007 12:34:57 PM PDT
by
longtermmemmory
(VOTE! http://www.senate.gov and http://www.house.gov)
To: B4Ranch
It is worse than that. They are challenging the federal government’s right to enforce the laws at all. This is what happens when your country is overrun by people who are unfamiliar with the concept of the rule of law. I agree those groups need to be charge under RICO and put down.
7
posted on
08/12/2007 12:37:05 PM PDT
by
3AngelaD
(They screwed up their own countries so bad they had to leave, and now they're here screwing up ours)
To: Puppage
” ... release records ... on how agents coordinated the raids”.
An enemy attempt at learning ICE tactics.
8
posted on
08/12/2007 12:40:54 PM PDT
by
AngrySpud
(Behold, I am The Anti-Chrust ... (I am Anti-Hillary))
To: 3AngelaD
Then let’s push for RICO lawsuits.
9
posted on
08/12/2007 12:41:48 PM PDT
by
freekitty
To: 3AngelaD; B4Ranch
“This is what happens when your country is overrun by people who are unfamiliar with the concept of the rule of law”
Well, they commit enough crime here for us to declare a national emergency!
10
posted on
08/12/2007 12:41:56 PM PDT
by
stephenjohnbanker
( Hunter/Thompson/Thompson/Hunter in 08! "Read my lips....No new RINO's" !!)
To: Puppage
Somebody PLEASE stand up and stop this insanity!
11
posted on
08/12/2007 12:42:10 PM PDT
by
parthian shot
(I can't stand much more of this!!)
To: beckaz
What the hell times do we live in? So now we have to ask WHY is it authorities are enforcing the law? Furthermore, the fact that such groups operate in broad day light and sue the gvmnt and raise money and are hailed by many in the country as moral paragons tells me, yet again, that our side is still losing the crucial PR war.
I guess Alberto Gonzales will defend us. Hahahaha! What a joke this country has become.
12
posted on
08/12/2007 12:53:35 PM PDT
by
texastoo
((((((USA)))))((((((, USA))))))((((((. USA))))))))
To: 3AngelaD
This is about intimidation. This is about people who know the system and are using the system.
They will look to sue the informants as an intimidation tactic. Jamming if you will.
Lawyers who represent these people should have their licenses pulled.
13
posted on
08/12/2007 12:53:42 PM PDT
by
longtermmemmory
(VOTE! http://www.senate.gov and http://www.house.gov)
To: parthian shot
“Somebody PLEASE stand up and stop this insanity!”
The government will just take token action against illegal immigrants, and then will cave when pressured by the illegals’ interest groups; just like they cave when the islamists whine and seethe.
At the end of the day it will be up to the American people to take care of this problem. The sad thing is, only THEN will the government take any action, but that action will be directed against the American people who were just doing what the damn government should have been doing all along!
14
posted on
08/12/2007 12:54:00 PM PDT
by
ought-six
("Give me liberty, or give me death!")
To: 3AngelaD
Bears repeating!
This is what happens when your country is overrun by people who are unfamiliar with the concept of the rule of law.
15
posted on
08/12/2007 12:54:02 PM PDT
by
Graymatter
( Fort Knox needs an audit.)
To: 3AngelaD
When communities like Hazelton PA pass laws against illegals they get sued on the grounds that only the feds can enforce immigration laws. Now the feds are getting sued for enforcing immigration laws.
Remeber this when another shamisty bill comes up..
16
posted on
08/12/2007 1:16:28 PM PDT
by
Kid Shelleen
(La Raza is Spanish for Tan Klan)
To: Graymatter
Actually, they are more concerned with particular outcomes than rule of law.
17
posted on
08/12/2007 1:19:57 PM PDT
by
Mad_Tom_Rackham
(Elections have consequences.)
To: ought-six
action will be directed against the American people who were just doing what the damn government should have been doing all along!Yup, and that will be the beginning of a civil war, which will be the only course of action for we who believe in rule of law will have. Sad we have been reduced to violating the law to establish the law.
18
posted on
08/12/2007 1:23:35 PM PDT
by
Logical me
(Oh, well!!!)
To: 3AngelaD
“This is what happens when your country is overrun by people who are unfamiliar with the concept of the rule of law.”
Oh, they’re very familiar with the rule of law — but, like American leftists, they don’t think it should apply to them. And, like American leftists, they usually get their way.
19
posted on
08/12/2007 1:31:43 PM PDT
by
vetsvette
(Bring Him Back)
To: AngrySpud
I believe the ENTIRE ACLU, and all Lawyers there, be charged with RICO violations.
To: Puppage
21
posted on
08/12/2007 2:16:55 PM PDT
by
imahawk
(Defeat liberalism, its the right thing to do for America.)
To: Puppage
I saw a post somewhere else this morning where the city of Houston is getting high-powered attorneys pro bono to handle some of the city’s litigation. Maybe its time for some of us to organize some sympathetic law firms to help fight some of this insanity. Especially against the ACLU.
To: Puppage
these illegal aliens have NO RIGHTS.
23
posted on
08/12/2007 2:18:58 PM PDT
by
television is just wrong
(deport all illegal aliens NOW. Put all AMERICANS TO WORK FIRST. END WELFARE.)
To: Puppage
these illegal aliens have NO RIGHTS.
24
posted on
08/12/2007 2:19:02 PM PDT
by
television is just wrong
(deport all illegal aliens NOW. Put all AMERICANS TO WORK FIRST. END WELFARE.)
To: Puppage
With 5 to 10% of the US population illegal, I would hope that immigration officials would arrest tens of thousands everyday.
To: Puppage
“City leaders and the immigrant-rights groups have questioned whether it was retaliation for New Haven’s new ID card program. “
Well I would hope so! BFD. So now laws must be enforced only when the lawbreakers say its ok to enforce them? There are a lot of insane, or totally ignorant people with too much idle time on their hands, trying to destroy this nation. The city leaders need to have the illegals next door to their private residences and see how they like it.
To: longtermmemmory
27
posted on
08/13/2007 7:37:18 AM PDT
by
3AngelaD
(They screwed up their own countries so bad they had to leave, and now they're here screwing up ours)
To: vetsvette
The pro-illegal groups are of course familiar with the rule of law, and skilled at subverting it and finding ways around it. Those they represent have not the slightest clue what the phrase means. Please see my tagline.
28
posted on
08/13/2007 7:39:43 AM PDT
by
3AngelaD
(They screwed up their own countries so bad they had to leave, and now they're here screwing up ours)
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