Posted on 11/10/2007 4:14:59 AM PST by Man50D
Sanctuary cities – whether their law enforcement personnel deliberately obstruct federal immigration enforcement or simply ignore such violations when they encounter them – soon could be facing the wrath of the federal government in court, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
Homeland Secretary Michael Chertoff recently told a congressional committee he didn't intend to "tolerate interference" by sanctuary cities that would block companies from participating in such programs as "E-Verify," which allows workers' IDs to be checked before hiring.
"I intend to take as vigorous legal actions as the law allows to prevent that from happening, prevent that kind of interference," he told Congress.
Within days, the first fruits of that promised were revealed, with a lawsuit against the state of Illinois over a legislative proposal signed into law by Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
According to published reports Illinois is "complicating" efforts by federal agents with a state law that virtually blocks corporations from participating in the program that was set up to verify if new employees have legal standing to work in the United States.
"The state of Illinois has now made it illegal to comply with federal law," Chertoff told reporters when the action was filed. "That's not acceptable as a matter of the Constitution."
Illinois already had become famous among sanctuary supporters, since one of the higher profile cases in recent months involved Elvira Arellano, who came into the United States illegally, was deported, returned, and when facing another deportation took refuge in Adalberto United Methodist Church in Chicago.
She remained there for months before traveling to California where she was arrested and deported from Los Angeles.
(Excerpt) Read more at worldnetdaily.com ...
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.
about time,but it took them this dammed long to do something?
about time,but it took them this dammed long to do something?
Unless we get a Hunter, Thompson or Romney administration in 2009... nothing of substance will ever be done to eliminate illegals.
SOMEBODY SEND THIS TO THE CITY OF ALEXANDRIA, VA - THEY JUST PASSED A RESOLUTION WELCOMING ILLEGALS
BILL EUILLE, MAYOR — ALEXVAMAYOR@AOL.COM
It seems like a no brainer for the Feds. Cut off any federal funding.
These sanctuary cities crap about public safety is just that,CRAP, what it’s all about is Democrats getting illegal votes. Why else would they be against voters having to show ID and so in favor of them getting a drivers license which just happens to be what one needs to register to vote.
Can we get them to round up the "day laborers" standing around the local Home Depot stores? Hit the building areas of new home contractors and see who is swinging the hammers? Hit any area that has gone through a hail storm and check roofing contractors and their employees? Hit the restaurants all over the place? Hit the landscaping industry in almost any city? Hit the laborers doing road construction? Hitting any of these does not take a SWAT team. One person can do the job. Simply checking these potential hot spots would cause mass migration of illegals to "more friendly" areas. Hit enough spots and the more friendly area would be their original, legal home. The people in charge of these illegals could be arrested and prosecuted. This done a few times would dry up the employers of illegals. The news all across the land is that the tough enforcement of immigration laws by local authorities causes mass movement of illegals to more friendly territories - some are even said to go back to their country of origin. Obviously, a crackdown on ALL illegals throughout the U.S. (and so-called sanctuary cities) would cause illegal immigrant self-deportation just like we have been screaming. Why is this so hard for some to see?
Just cut off all Fed funds to the state until they change their ways. If Congress can mandate speed limits, DUI limits or most anything else they please using the funding carrot/stick method, why not this too?
It will be resolved way faster than taking it to court.
Loopy Denver Mayor Hickenlooper (real name) allows these illegals to run around, we have more crime and no stopping the illegals from staying here and bringing up more relatives from Mexico or whereever. With the DNC having their convention in Denver it should be a great time to report and have them deported. The Democrats will try to stop any legal action against them, after all, who will park their cars, serve their every need and keep their hotel rooms clean?
Talk is cheap. There were many sanctuary cities in Massachusetts when Romney was Governor and he said/did nothing.
Estimation would not be all that difficult. Either the locals cooperate or the number of illegals seeking ER treatment, in jails or other easy-to-count places are sampled and projected into the total population for the area and adjusted accordingly. This would not only be fair, but it would be a great way to get more influence for rust belt areas at the expense of areas who welcome illegal aliens.
But Michael Jerkoff is unlikely to suggest such a sensible solution.
This is exactly what needs to happen. If a crime is committed against an American citizen by an illegal alien in a sanctuary city, the victim(s) or families of the victim(s) need to heavily sue the officials of that city as complicit in and accessories to the crime.
After a few of these suits that would bankrupt some of these places, the people who want to coddle these criminals and help them break the law can reassess whether or not they love the illegals as much as they thought.
Accountability is a funny thing. It clears the mind remarkably, and helps those who function solely on their emotions to get a quick grip on reality.
I don't think it would take long at all for all the sanctuary cities to suddenly rediscover the merits of federal law if they were facing the prospect of having to fork over millions and millions to the real people who suffer real tragedies because of illegal aliens and the people who aid and abet them.
Talk IS cheap... but other than Hunter, Thompson and Romney... NO OTHER REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES give a damn about the illegal invasion.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.