Free Republic

ALBANY, N.Y. — A Germantown man who has been deported to Mexico four times and arrested by Border Patrol and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement a total of six times for illegally entering the United States pleaded guilty to re-entering the country illegally once again, the U.S. Attorney’s Northern District of New York Office said Thursday. Jesus Vazquez Loyola, 26, who is a citizen of Mexico, faces two years imprisonment, supervised release of up to one year, and a fine of up to $250,000 after pleading guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Mae D’Agostino to felony re-entry Wednesday, prosecutors said....

With more than half the population being a non-white 55.2 percent, Texas joins New Mexico, California, Hawaii, and Washington D.C. with a "majority-minority" status, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Majority-minority is a legal term used to describe a U.S. state that has a racial composition of less than 50 percent white. The Census Bureau defines individuals who are considered 'white' as non-Hispanics who have family origins in Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

Oxnard, Calif. (AP) -- A Southern California school district has banned the use of Mexican epithets for indigenous people in a campaign to encourage tolerance and stop bullying. The Los Angeles Times reports that Oxnard School District, home to a large community of Mexican farm workers, has prohibited the use of "oaxaquita," which means "little Oaxacan," and "indito," or "little Indian" referring to the indigenous people from Mexico's Oaxaca state.

In an aggressive effort to boost deportations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has begun to increase by nearly 25 percent the number of agents assigned to find and deport illegal immigrants with criminal records, pulling 150 officers from desks and backroom jobs to add extra fugitive search teams around the country. The plan was launched when the number of deportations slumped after several years of growth, partly because of the drop in illegal immigration along the Southwest border. But critics, including some inside ICE, denounced the effort as politically inspired to help President Barack Obama's re-election campaign. The move, which...

Undocumented Immigrants Pursue College and Professional Careers May 26, 2012 Higher education is becoming a more common endeavor for undocumented immigrants eager to pursue careers as professionals. Going to college seemed inconceivable when Adriana Sánchez, the 12-year-old daughter of farm workers, was brought from Mexico to Central California and the family overstayed their visas. Even though Sánchez excelled in high school, she was in the country illegally, lacked a Social Security number and work permit, and didn't qualify for financial aid. But she volunteered hundreds of hours and paid her way through college and graduate school with a dozen internships....

Mirian Yohanna Garcia Mancilla's family faces her alleged killer in court on Friday morning. Tears streamed down the faces of family and friends of a woman found dead in Riverhead as they faced the man who allegedly killed her in a Riverside courtroom on Friday.

On Thursday, Milford police arrested Tigoberto Orellano-Alonso, 25, after he was witnessed driving erratically on South Bow Street. The Mexican national was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol as well as driving without a license. . . According to a police report, Orellano-Alonso led the arresting officer on a short chase and failed to fully cooperate when stopped. An open container of alcohol was also observed inside the vehicle. . . In light of several recent incidents, it would seem that Massachusetts’ roads have become very dangerous . . Denice was hit and dragged close to a...

The 65 page indictment unsealed Wednesday outlines a massive conspiracy to defraud employees, IHOP corporate, investors, the Internal Revenue Service and federal, state and local law enforcement. Background Prior to 2003, Tarek Elkafrawi owned and operated two IHOP franchises; one in Decatur, Illinois and the other in Evansville, Indiana. During his time in Decatur, the indictment alleges, Elkafrowi began a social friendship with Autumn Lee Tangas, an employee of IHOP Corporate in Decatur. Between 2003 and 2006 Elkafrawi purchased, either entirely or in partnership with other investors, 6 other IHOP franchises. Those stores are located in Toledo (2), Holland, Findlay,...

Last month, Jose Luis Hernandez-Dominguez, 47, was sentenced in a Maui courtroom to 10 years in prison for the repeated sexual assault of a 5-year-old girl. . . prosecuting attorney Robert Rivera explained: “He (Hernandez-Dominguez) told her, ‘If you tell your mom, the police will come and get you.’ And that caused this 5-year-old girl to remain silent and go through these sexual assaults that this man perpetrated on her week after week after week.” . .Through an interpreter, Hernandez-Dominguez told the court that though he did molest the girl and had been on Maui illegally for the last six...

A bill that would close an IRS tax credit loophole that allows the IRS to funnel over $4 billion to illegal immigrants is being held up by Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV). Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), a senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee, has been vocal in his disdain for the blatant misuse of taxpayer monies: I’m disappointed that the Majority Leader objected to our effort today to prevent billions in tax credits from being wrongly sent to illegal immigrants claiming they have dependents, many of whom do not live in...

Jurors reached a verdict Wednesday in the penalty phase of the murder trial of Pedro Espinoza, convicted of murdering Jamiel Shaw. The jury deliberated for less than two and a half hours before recommending the death penalty for Espinoza. Espinoza was convicted of fatally shooting Jamiel Shaw II, a 17-year-old star football player at Los Angeles High School. On March 2, 2008, Espinoza confronted and shot the teen in the abdomen and the head just a few doors away from Shaw's Arlington Heights home, thinking Shaw was a rival gang member. Espinoza, now 23, was convicted on May 9 of...

McALLEN — Federal agents arrested four people accused of smuggling 131 illegal immigrants found at a stash house near Alton. ICE agents detained the 131 illegal immigrants Tuesday after a raid at a house near Rhode Island and St. Jude streets, outside Alton, said Nina Pruneda, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman. The immigrants found at the house were from Mexico and Central America, and did not require medical attention, Pruneda said. The four people arrested had been expected to appear before a U.S. magistrate judge in McAllen to face human smuggling charges, but no court filings detailing the alleged...

The Columbia County illegal-alien building contractor got 15 months in federal prison last Tuesday for harboring illegal aliens himself. Diaz had managed to ensconce himself here illegally in a very nice multimillion-dollar house and build up a substantial contracting business on the back of other illegal immigrants – using the cheap labor to leverage an unfair business advantage over legal contractors who abide by our laws. Yet, Diaz had considerable local support in the courtroom – otherwise sensible business people who somehow thought this guy was getting a raw deal. To heck with the rest of Columbia County and their...

JACKSON, MS (WLBT) - The owners of a Ridgeland irrigation company pled guilty to harboring illegal aliens this morning. The U.S. attorney's office says Paul and Barbara Love, owners of Love Irrigation, were charged with improper use of social security numbers and hiding the fact they hired illegal workers from immigration agents. As part of a plea agreement the couple has said they will pay a fine of $515,000.00. They could also face up to ten years in prison. Sentencing has been set for August 2nd. Tuesday, Barbara Love, the majority owner of the company, is expected to plea guilty,...

CHICAGO — A federal judge has sentenced a Chicago man to three years in prison for a nearly half-million dollar fraud scheme involving the Illinois Department of Employment Insurance. Federal officials say 34-year-old Robert Cisneros was sentenced Wednesday after pleading guilty to mail fraud in January. Prosecutors say because of Cisneros the department paid the insurance money to about 57 ineligible claimants who weren't legally allowed to work in the U.S. Cisneros also was ordered to pay restitution to the department. Department Director Jay Rowell says "every resident of Illinois" is harmed by insurance fraud. He says his department worked...

Ever since Obama assumed the office of President, critics have hammered him on a number of Constitutional issues. Critics have complained that much, if not all of Obama’s major initiatives run headlong into Constitutional roadblocks on the power of the federal government. Obama certainly did not help himself in the eyes of the Court when he used the venue of the State of the Union address early in the year to publicly flog the Court over its ruling that the First Amendment grants the right to various organizations to run political ads during the time of an election. The tongue-lashing...

In a rare show of bipartisanship, Sen. Marco Rubio teamed up with a couple of Democratic colleagues to propose a bill on Tuesday to help startup businesses and immigrant entrepreneurs create jobs. The bill would cut taxes and ease regulations. Its most controversial provision would provide visas for high-skilled immigrants to remain in the U.S. It builds on an earlier bill Rubio, a Florida Republican, introduced with Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — A man was arrested after allegedly trying to kidnap and rape a 67-year-old woman who was sitting in a car near Congress and South Franklin streets. Antonio Lopez-Bautista, 18, of South Federal Street, an illegal immigrant, was charged with second-degree attempted kidnapping, first-degree attempted rape and second-degree assault, all felonies, as well as criminal obstruction of breathing or blood-circulation, a misdemeanor. Police say Lopez-Bautista attacked a woman who was sitting in her car at about 3:42 a.m. Tuesday morning, waiting in her car for her husband to get off work. He pulled her from the car and...

WTHR, the NBC affiliate in Indianapolis, recently reported about how millions of illegal aliens are getting billions of dollars in U.S. tax refunds without having paid a dime in income taxes. The story instantly went viral because it's true. You won't believe what illegals are getting away with, and our government is enabling them. Here's how it works. Illegal immigrants cannot qualify for legitimate Social Security numbers, which would entitle them to work legally in the U.S. and file income tax returns, but the Internal Revenue Service allows them to apply for nine-digit individual taxpayer identification numbers, or ITINs, which...

BROWNSVILLE — A Mexican businessman is the target of a federal probe alleging widespread money laundering that involves the Gulf Cartel and a former Tamaulipas governor who owns a condiminium on South Padre Island. Fernando Alejandro Cano Martinez, 55, of Ciudad Victoria, Tamps., is charged with conspiracy to launder monetary instruments since on or about Jan. 1, 1998. The indictment alleges Cano and others conspired to use an array of corporate entities they formed in Texas to launder portions of bribes paid by the Gulf Cartel to high level elected officials and candidates for such elected office in Tamaulipas. Millions...

SARATOGA SPRINGS — A man was arrested after allegedly trying to kidnap and rape a 67-year-old woman who was sitting in a car near Congress and South Franklin streets . . Antonio Lopez-Bautista, 18, of South Federal Street, an illegal immigrant, was charged with second-degree attempted kidnapping, first-degree attempted rape and second-degree assault . . He pulled her from the car and began to assault her, dragging her along the sidewalk, punching and kicking her while trying to pull her into an isolated, unlit area, according to police. . . Police found Lopez-Bautista hiding under bushes a few buildings...

An airport security supervisor at a NJ-based international airport has been arrested and charged with using the identity for 20 years of a man who was brutally murdered. Nigerian native Abimbola Olumuyiwa Oyewole, 54, has been in the US illegally since 1989, AP reported. He was in charge of 30 guards at Newark Intl airport when nabbed. Oyewole was hired before the TSA existed, the controversial federal agency said, noting that that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey checked and cleared Oyewole's credentials when hiring and promoting him. NOTE the TSA recently released a report singling out...

JACKSON, Miss. -- Officials say a prison for illegal immigrants in Mississippi was on lockdown after a riot that began on Sunday left one guard dead and at least 19 people injured. All inmates were secured in their housing units by 2:45 a.m. Monday, nearly 12 hours after the disturbance began at the Adams County Correctional Center in southwest Mississippi, Mike Machak, a prison spokesman, said in a statement, according to WDSU-TV, an NBC News affiliate in New Orleans. Officials haven't released the identity of the slain guard. Machak said 16 other employees were treated and released from a hospital...

A tree-trimming company based in Houston reached a $2 million settlement agreement with the Department of Homeland Security that will allow it to avoid criminal prosecution for hiring illegal immigrants, officials announced Friday. The agreement capped an investigation into ABC Professional Tree Services Inc. that dates to early 2008, when Homeland Security Investigations agents in Alabama were tipped off that the company was hiring illegal immigrants. The company, which trims trees and vegetation for electric utilities in more than a dozen states, made about $2 million between 2005 and 2011 from the work of illegal immigrants, according to the U.S....

Legislative Democrats aren't organizing a bake sale just yet, but they say they will desperately search for cash in the coming weeks to avoid the most severe cuts proposed by Gov. Jerry Brown. Saying the state's budget deficit has risen from $9.2 billion to $15.7 billion, the Democratic governor has proposed more cuts to programs that serve the state's poorest residents. Brown has described it as a "day of reckoning" and wants his fellow Democrats to slash as much as possible before he asks voters to hike taxes on sales and high-income earners in November. But Democrats signaled immediately that...

A Democrat member of Arizona’s House of Representatives who fights for illegal aliens’ rights, Paul Ben Arredondo, was charged on Wednesday by a federal grand jury with bribery, fraud, attempted extortion and false statements he made to the FBI in connection with receiving more than $6,000 in tickets to sporting and special events while he was a Tempe, Arizona, council member and a member-elect of the Arizona House, according to a federal law enforcement official. The indictment charges the 63-year-old liberal with one count of federal programs bribery, two counts of honest services mail fraud, one count of attempted Hobbs...

by John HillStand With ArizonaThe Alabama Legislature scored a huge victory on Friday, as Gov. Robert Bentley reluctantly signed immigration law H.B. 658 - after legislators refused to "moderate" provisions Bentley (and open-borders activists) had complained were too "harsh" against illegal aliens. Alabama's immigration law H.B. 56, patterned after Arizona's S.B. 1070, passed in 2011, and has been called the toughest state immigration law in America. But several issues were causing legal Alabamans longer lines to obtain state documents and foreign executives issues with being detained, and those provisions were fixed in the new bill. But H.B. 658 (PDF) also...

The murder of a young Flanders woman by an undocumented Guatemalan man has ignited heated discourse over immigration -- and what some feel is unfair backlash against the Latino community. The focus, some believe, should remain on the crime -- not the defendant's country of origin or immigration status; others disagree. On Wednesday, Suffolk County homicide detectives arrested Guillermo Alfonso Alvarado-Ajcuc, 21, of Riverhead for the alleged murder of Mirian Garcia, 29. Alvarado-Ajcuc, a Guatemalan resident who is in the United States without a green card, was charged with one count of murder in the second degree and rape in...

On Wednesday we filed a taxpayer lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department, Police Chief Charlie Beck and members of the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners over Special Order 7. Under this policy police officers will no longer immediately impound the vehicles of unlicensed drivers for 30 days, as long as they meet certain conditions. It's no secret that this policy change was made to specifically accommodate illegal aliens. The problem is that Special Order 7 is unlawful. And, for this reason, Judicial Watch's lawsuit on behalf of Harold P. Sturgeon, filed May 8, 2012, in the Superior Court...

As four separate wildfires devour the state of Arizona-burning more than 17,500 acres at last count-it’s instructive to look at how our government has handled its investigation into the two enormous ones which blazed a path of destruction across the state in 2011. According to the Arizona Daily Star, both the Horseshoe 2 and the Monument Fire were caused by humans, which in the case of national forests invariably means illegal aliens and/or Mexican narco-traffickers nesting within wilderness cordoned off from American citizens. The tragedy, which should elicit anger and frustration in anyone concerned about the environment and the lives...

The California Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to consider whether the State Bar has the authority to license an undocumented immigrant and allow him to become a practicing lawyer. In their weekly closed-door conference, the justices unanimously decided to consider the case of Sergio Garcia, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico who graduated from Chico State University

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Marco Rubio's attempt to provide limited legal status to many of the children who entered this country illegally is finding a warm welcome from a surprising source: Senate Democrats. The Florida Republican, who is huddling with Senate leaders from both parties this week, is emerging as a prominent player in the contentious debate over immigration. His search for an acceptable compromise on the long-sought DREAM Act has drawn tentative support across the party divide, raising the chances for passage in this election year. . . "We've talked with them about policies that would help these kids...

The California Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to consider whether the State Bar has the authority to license an undocumented immigrant and allow him to become a practicing lawyer. In their weekly closed-door conference, the justices unanimously decided to consider the case of Sergio Garcia, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico who graduated from Chico State University, a Florida law school and passed the state Bar exam in July 2009 but has been stalled in his bid to secure his California law license.

Mitt Romney was already facing a hard time within his party when it comes to his stance on illegal immigration. Now, the presumptive GOP nominee faces criticism on the issue from a potential running mate, New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez (R). In an interview with Newsweek’s Andrew Romano, Martinez takes aim at “self-deportation,” an idea promoted by Romney during the GOP primary and one at the heart of Arizona’s controversial S.B. 1070 anti-illegal immigration law. As we sit down at a local Starbucks, I ask about immigration. It’s a topic she has been reluctant to discuss since winning the Republican...

Harry Reid was in full pander mode in his Unvision interview with anchor (and noted amnesty for illegals advocate) Jorge Ramos. Ramos first confronted Reid about Obama's failure to keep his campaign promise to push for an amnesty bill in his first term, despite his 14 months of Congressional filibuster-proof super-majority in 2009-10. An irritated Reid responded as we would expect him to: by blaming Republicans, even though the GOP could not have stopped any bill in Obama's first term, if Obama had actually made it a priority (which he did not). But then Reid made news by revealing that...

Putting illegal entrants in jail would be “undemocratic,” MK Dov Henin of the extreme-left Hadash party said Wednesday. “I was very sorry to hear what the Minister of the Interior said… We need to deal harshly with criminals, but we also need to provide solutions for those who aren’t criminals,” he said. Minister of the Interior Eli Yishai proposed putting all illegal entrants in detention facilities or prisons to await deportation after being giving a monetary grant. Refugees who fear persecution should be allowed to remain in Israel...

LAREDO, Texas (AP) - A man and a woman from Mexico face up to 10 years in prison for illegally having about 27,000 rounds of ammunition in South Texas.

President Obama’s illegal-alien uncle is once again a fully legal Massachusetts driver, reclaiming his license this afternoon after serving a 45-day suspension he agreed to as part of a plea deal in a drunken-driving rap. Onyango Obama, 67, walked into the Registry of Motor Vehicles’ Worcester branch about 2:30 this afternoon and walked out moments later with a new license, according to RMV spokeswoman Sara Lavoie. Obama had been driving for about a month and a half on a hardship license, which allowed him to get behind the wheel only during certain hours. “The hardship restriction was lifted today as...

Today we encourage you to watch Senator Marco Rubio answer questions from constituents on his proposal to the alternative version of the DREAM Act. Click here or on the image below to watch the full video.

Illegal immigrant students and members of the House sued the Senate this week to try to overturn the upper chamber’s filibuster rule, arguing that the 60-vote supermajority requirement violates the Constitution and is blocking important legislation such as legalization for illegal immigrants. If successful, the lawsuit, filed Monday, would rewrite the way the Senate operates — though courts generally have been reluctant to meddle in internal congressional rules.

While officially the investigation into last year’s Monument Fire is “closed-unsolved,” there is no doubt it was human-caused. What is not known is whether it was accidentally started, or was lit as a diversion for criminal activities involving drug or people smuggling, Coronado National Forest spokeswoman Heidi Schewel said. “We know it was human-caused, there was no lightning in the area,” Schewel said during a telephone interview with the Herald/Review Monday. Monday she sent out a press release which highlighted investigations of the Monument and Horseshoe 2 fires in Cochise County done by forest service wildland fire investigators. Investigation of...

SNIP But federal law enforcement agents on the border are skeptical that the illegal immigrant tide is slowing. And new information from the U.S. financial sector shows that more money is flowing from American cities to Mexico in the form of remittances from immigrants than last year. Federal law enforcement officials interviewed by The Washington Examiner say security is being compromised as the government seeks to keep a lid on the border as a campaign issue during the presidential election cycle. Department of Homeland Security's Border Patrol agents and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are being told not to make...

The politicians love to wax romantic about today's kids as America's future, and apparently the current generation bodes poorly for a degenerate nation. In Columbus, NM customs officers since the start of the year "have caught six students trying to smuggle drugs into the country during the busy morning rush hour before classes" as reported by Angela Kocherga for KVUE: As many as 400 students a day use the pedestrian lanes at the Columbus port of entry on school days. The majority are U.S. citizens, but they have family ties in Mexico and live on both sides of the border....

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) made an appeal to Hispanic voters Monday, saying that that Mitt Romney would address "the need for immigration reform" and that the presumptive GOP presidential nominee did not think self-deportation was "the entire answer to the issue." “He is solidly in favor of immigration reform,” said McCain about Romney, in an interview with Fox News Latino. “He knows that there are 12 million people who are in this country illegally. He knows you have to address it. He has also stated, recently, and I’m happy to say, that we have to address it in a humane...

BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) -- An illegal immigrant has pleaded guilty to raping a six-year-old Shallotte girl in 2010. Luis Arturo Sanchez, 23, entered a guilty plea this afternoon in Brunswick County Superior Court to first degree rape. Prosecutors say at the time of the crime, Sanchez was in the United States illegally. Assistant District Attorney Meredith Everhart said in court during the plea that Sanchez had confessed to engaging in intercourse with the child on one occasion and to attempting sexual intercourse with her on at least two other occasions. Judge Ola Lewis sentenced Sanchez to 12 to...

Barely a day goes by that President Barack Obama doesn’t harangue us with complaints that we’re not all paying our “fair share.” Considering the fact that 47 percent of American households pay no federal income tax whatsoever, and that the top 5 percent of wage earners pay almost 59 percent of the total tax revenue, I agree with the president: There are those who are taking advantage of the Internal Revenue Code’s complexity. But it’s not the people the president has in mind each time he delivers his class warfare address. Indianapolis NBC affiliate WTHR recently uncovered a growing segment...

by John HillStand With Arizona “They caught the wrong Sheriff on this matter.”Those seven words should have sent the message loud and clear to the Obama administration that they are in for a tough, and potentially embarrassing fight against "America's Toughest Sheriff" Joe Arpaio. Arpaio, who has become the nation's most prominent symbol in the fight against illegal immigration, appeared on the Mike Broomhead show on KFYI in his first interview since being officially served with a suit by the Obama administration’s Justice Department. Click below for full interview... Arpaio was, predictably, entirely un-intimidated, condescendingly remarking that “it’s a political...

SANTA ROSA, Calif. — A Santa Rosa man pleaded guilty Thursday morning in Sonoma County Superior Court to hit-and-run and other charges stemming from the death of a 4-year-old boy he struck and killed in a crosswalk in August. Marcos Lopez-Garcia, 23, pleaded guilty to felony hit-and-run causing injury or death, and to misdemeanor charges of gross vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence and driving without a license, defense attorney Walter Rubenstein said. Garcia faces five and a half years in prison when he is sentenced on June 29, Rubenstein said. "He wanted to resolve the case because he feels bad...

U.S. Immigrant Population At Its Highest Since 1920 As 13% Are Foreign-Born EMILY ANNE EPSTEIN 11 May 2012 According to a new report by the U.S. Census Bureau, there were 40 million foreign-born people living in the country in 2010 - the highest percentage of the total population since 1920. Just a decade earlier, only 31 million people, or 11 per cent of the population, residing in the country were born elsewhere. While foreign-born residents resided in every state, more than half lived in just the 'gateway' states: California, New York, Texas and Florida. United: According to a new report...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- Florida officials are now saying that nearly 200,000 registered voters may not be U.S. citizens. Earlier in the week, state election officials announced they had identified more than 2,600 people who are in Florida legally but ineligible to vote.