Posted on 09/19/2007 6:04:36 AM PDT by freespirited
SIMI VALLEY, Calif. - A church that is sheltering an illegal immigrant and her U.S.-born infant son will be billed nearly $40,000 for city police services during a weekend protest by anti-illegal immigration activists, officials said.
Mayor Paul Miller, who called United Church of Christ congregants irresponsible for "harboring an illegal immigrant," told the City Council Monday that he was ready to issue the $39,306 invoice right away.
Officials said that the church's public announcement that it would shelter an illegal immigrant provoked protesters to come and create a possible disturbance, which required the police presence.
"This City Council has the obligation to protect all citizens in the community against any potential violence as a result of these ill-conceived actions," Miller said.
United Church of Christ Rev. June Goudey did not return phone messages left by the Ventura County Star seeking comment.
Sunday's rally drew about 125 protesters and counter-protestors. Between four and 15 officers were on site during the three-hour rally, with two sheriff's tactical response teams on standby, police Chief Mike Lewis said.
The anti-illegal immigration protesters said they had hoped to make a citizen's arrest of the sheltered woman, who has identified herself only as Liliana.
The woman has been living in the church's former parsonage as part of the New Sanctuary Movement, which arranges church accommodations for illegal immigrants in the U.S.
City officials said they previously advised Goudey against taking in Liliana, who had earlier been sheltered at a church in Long Beach.
"This city is not going to be known as sanctuary city," Miller said.
The country could use this guy in Washington.
It’s about time someone had the guts to do this.
Consequences!
Yes, and I hope they make them pay it.
Good. Let the rule of law prevail.
***Yes, and I hope they make them pay it.***
No problem. The libs in California will send in checks enough to cover this ten times over.
Maybe HIllary will donate her illegal campaign money to this church.
Actually, they'll find someway of using taxpayer money to cover the bill. It's other people's money that they like to spend.
Maybe they should also charge the illegal. She will be cleaning toilets for the rest of her life to pay it back.
L
We drove by this protest on our way home from church on Sunday, and noticed a LOT of uniformed police there. It had to add up to a lot of man-hours. Besides sheltering an illegal, this church has done some disgusting things relating to the homosexual agenda, too. My friend is Church of Christ and her conservative church is humiliated by what’s going on here — liberal in every way.
Lewis said the preliminary cost estimate includes more than 500 police staff hours at $35,744; 47 hours of Public Works staff, at $1,271; 22 hours of transportation, at $647; and about $1,654 for items like food and water for staff.
One local religious official said the city sending an invoice "is absurd."
"What the city is doing is giving legal license to racism, and they are attacking the victim," said Rabbi John Sherwood, chairman of the interfaith ministerial association, based in Ventura and Oxnard.
"If people want to demonstrate, requiring the police to be there, let the demonstrators be the ones who pay."
Save Our State leaders disagreed.
"I think the mayor is right," said Chelene Nightingale, a spokeswoman for Save Our State. "The city has a responsibility to its citizens, and the church made the decision to harbor a criminal, regardless of the crime."
The City Council made it clear it doesn't want Liliana in a Simi Valley church.
"This city is not going to be known as sanctuary city,'" Miller said.
At the council meeting, Miller said he sent a letter to U.S. Rep. Elton Gallegly, R-Simi Valley, requesting immigration officials take custody of Liliana.
Simi Valley was the wrong place to pull this :-)
I used to live right around the corner from that cop shop; got to know a lot of them by name due to my son’s constant truancy and total inability to choose friends wisely.
Simi is home to 3500 cops.
Oh ....... for a second there I thought the church was in a simi-trailer. Perhaps one that had just arrived with a new load via NAFTA.
ping
Good. Bankrupt them. Then buy the building and use it as Minuteman headquarters.
Thanks for the clarification; I just skipped over that “United” part.
“Baptists without a piano” - LOL. We Baptists love our evangelistic-style piano accompaniment!
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