Despite controversy over violent crimes, new immigrants commit crimes at lower rate than citizens, Pew Research finds

By Miriam Raftery

July 11, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – Congressman Duncan D. Hunter (R-Alpine) has announced plans to introduce a bill that would cut federal funds to any city, county or state that has enacted laws to prevent enforcement of federal immigration law, Times of San Diego reports.

The measure comes in response to the fatal shooting of Kate Steinle at the San Francisco waterfront by Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, an undocumented immigrant with five prior felony arrests. San Francisco, a sanctuary city, did not notify federal officials of Sanchez’s release despite pending deportation orders.  Mean while San Francisco’s mayor has announced plans to cooperate with the federal government for deportation of immigrants with a history of violent crimes—a small percentage of the total immigrant population.

March 4, 2015 (El Cajon) - The El Cajon legal clinic is back—with new hours, open Wednesdays from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Free legal assistance is available in the areas of  family law, immigration, consumer law, employment law, business law, wills and trusts, civil litigation and more.

December 2, 2014 (El Cajon) – The San Diego County Law Library announces a free legal clinic in El Cajon at 250 East Main Street.  The clinic will provide free legal services on Wednesdays from now through December 17th in the areas of family law, immigration, consumer law, employment law, business law, wills and trusts, civil litigation and more.

East County News Service

November 6, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) – A hearing is set for February 9, 2015 to approve a final settlement in the American Civil Liberties (ACLU) lawsuit to halt forced deportations by the U.S. Border Patrol and Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The ACLU won a class action lawsuit filed in 2013 after demonstrating that officials threatened, lied and intimidated undocumented immigrants, forcing them to sign “voluntary” deportation papers even if they had strong claims to remain in the U.S.

Hear our interview on the Central American immigrants:  https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

Updates on Murrietta, Congressman Juan Vargas' visit with immigrants in El Centro, and our interviews from this rally, including Enrique Morones of Border Angels. Rev. Beth Johnson from the Palomar Unitarian Universalist congregation and Everard Meade, Trans-Border Institute at USD, providing historical background on the Central American situation.

By Nadin Abbott

“What we need is humanitarian solutions. Sending the children back to sure death is not humanitarian.” – Enrique Morones, Border Angels

“This is a failure to enforce federal law at the federal level.” Murrieta Mayor Alan Long

July 2, 2014 (San Diego)—Yesterday, dozens of anti-immigrant protesters blocked buses carrying 140 immigrants from Central America, mostly women and children. Shouting racial slurs and carrying signs demanding the migrants be sent home, the protesters forced the buses bound for Murrieta to turn around and go to San Ysidro instead.  The buses carried migrants from Texas, where holding cells are over flowing due to a massive influx of families and children.

Today, Border Angels held a rally in support of the immigrants and began a donation drive for toys, clothing, diapers to welcome the immigrants, most of whom were fleeing violence and threats of death in their homeland.

But what’s fueling the surge in immigration from Central America?  To understand what’s happening today, we have to look back several decades into the history of the region and the role of U.S. foreign policy in Central America.

By Trevor Hill

June 11, 2014 (San Diego’s East County)--This year, the number of minors illegally crossing the border north through Mexico into the United States has increased to approximately 48,000 (92% higher than last year) and is projected to reach over 60,000 by the end of the 2014 fiscal year. The vast majority of these children is not coming from Mexico, but in fact is fleeing Central American countries like Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.

To deal with the influx, immigrant minors and adults alike are being shipped to warehouses and other facilities in order to hold them until they can be deported or granted a green card. About 700 minors are currently being held in a warehouse Nogales, Arizona, where living conditions have become deplorable due to overcrowding and lack of supplies. Fortunately, this is only a temporary housing for the children who will spend only enough time in Nogales to receive vaccinations and be checked medically before being sent to facilities in Ventura, California; San Antonio, Texas; and Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

This overcrowding is due to a lack of legal representatives willing and/or able to represent these children in Immigration Court. Because courts are not required to fund lawyers for the children, they must find a legal representative through advocacy groups or pro bono law programs.

By Nadin Abbott

June 27, 2013 (San Diego)—The United States Senate passed a comprehensive immigration bill today with 68 Senators voting for it, and 32 Senators voting against it.

In addition to citizenship for some undocumented immigrants and other provisions, the bill contains many provisions that would impact many in East County, including businesses, agriculture, and bolstering medical personnel.

It also calls for a border security “surge” including hundreds of miles of new border fencing and 18,000 additional federal agents on the U.S.-Mexico border.  Former Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who supports the bill, said it would create “the most militarized border since the fall of the Berlin Wall.”

May 4, 2013 (El Cajon) – Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District’s Board of Trustees voted on April 16 to adopt a resolution calling on Congress to enact the comprehensive immigration reforms being hammered out by a bipartisan “gang of eight” legislators (four Republicans and four Democrats).

The resolution was introduced by trustee Mary Kay Rosinski  and passed with five votes in favor.  The action comes on the heels of similar resolutions adopted by San Diego Unified School District and the San Diego City Council.

By Miriam Raftery

January 30, 2013 (Washington D.C.) –One day after a bipartisan coalition of Senators (four Republicans and four Democrats) introduced a framework for immigration reforms,  President Barack Obama has announced a four-part plan for comprehensive immigration changes 

The President's plan includes a pathway to citizenship, strengthening border security, cracking down on employers who hire undocumented workers, and streamlining our legal immigration system.  For details on the President's plan, see http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/01/29/watch-live-president-obama-speaks-comprehensive-immigration-reform.  For the Senators' framework, see http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/562528/reform0128principlessenatefinal.pdf.

December 5, 2012 -- (San Diego’s East County)--East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL/REGIONAL

• No fairy tale: The saga of the Mother Goose Parade, B-list celebrities, embezzled funds  (UT San Diego)
• Desert wind farm jolts San Diego (UT San Diego)
• She spent money on whatever she wanted (IT San Diego)
• Council counters Madrid on Fair Trade (UT  San Diego)
• Santee Crime report: $30,000 burglary at Padre Dam, thefts at Santana High (Santee Patch)
• Mayor, Councilman Ewin play hardball over lost softball in testy meeting (La Mesa Patch)
• Fire board member works for ambulance firm (UT San Diego)
• Old problems plague merchants group (La Mesa Today)

STATE

• California Legislature welcomes largest freshman class since 1966 (Sacramento Bee)
• California says federal immigration detention requests are voluntary (Reuters)

Read more for excerpts and links to full stories.

November13, 2012 --  (San Diego’s East County) – ECM World Watch helps you be an informed citizen about important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflecting all voices and views, we include links to a wide variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views. Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

• War opens inside GOP on immigration (The Hill)
• Can police collect DNA before conviction? Supreme Court to hear case. (Christian Science Monitor)
• Supreme Court appears ready to nuke the Voting Rights Act (Mother Jones)
• CIA Director David Petraeus resigns, cites extramarital affair (NBC News)
• Obama wins Florida, sweeping all battleground states (CNN)
• George P. Bush gears up for political run in Texas (KPBS)
• Obama, Boehner reiterate plan to work on ‘fiscal cliff’ but offer differing ways to do so (Washington Post)
• Marijuana legalization victories could be short-lived (Reuters)
• After Sandy, communities mobilize a new kind of disaster relief (Common Dreams)
• West Nile cases still climbing as temperatures drop (NPR)

WORLD

• To combat sanctions, Iran buys up gold (NPR)
• Wind farm noise does harm sleep and health, say scientists ( UK Telegraph)
• Strong earthquake off Guatemala kills at least 48 (Reuters)

Read more for excerpts and links to full stories.

By Patrick Osio

“By virtue of his father’s birth in Mexico where he was automatically a Mexican citizen by birth, makes US born Mitt Romney a second generation Mexican American. His actions against the Hispanic immigrant community reflect a loss of gratitude for Mexico granting the Romney family refuge from religious persecution they suffered in the U.S.” – Patrick Osio

September 14, 2012 (San Diego) -- Anyone born in the United Sates is a native-born citizen. Also, anyone who is born of American parents visiting or living in a foreign country, and is registered by those parents with the nearest U.S. consulate or Embassy, becomes a “native-born” citizen, though not born in U.S. territory. The child thus enjoys dual citizenship as a native-born in both the country of birth and the U.S.

• Supreme Court says Montana cannot ignore Citizens United ruling (NPR)
• Supreme Court rules juvenile life without parole is cruel and unusual punishment (Chicago Tribune)
• GM Grass linked to Texas cattle deaths; fields found toxic with cyanide produced by crop (CBS)
• E-mail change angers Facebook users (CNN)
• Thousands evacuated as wildfire nears Colorado towns (USA Today)
• With no vote, taxpayers stuck with tab on bonds (New York Times)

• Issa: No evidence White House covered up `Fast and Furious’ fallout (Los Angeles Times)
• Obama invokes executive privilege over ‘Fast and Furious’ documents (Los Angeles Times)
• Rubio sticks to GOP doctrine over immigration (The Hill)
• Cash rules at Romney retreat while Condoleeza Rice steals the show (Yahoo news)

• Analysis: Mexican ruling party faces defeat but may back reforms (Reuters)
• Muslim Brotherhood’s Morsi named Egyptian president (CBS)
• Morsi quits Muslim brother hood, vows to unite country (NBC)

• Iberdrola to explore sale of U.S. wind plants and projects (Recharge News)
• Quatar takes state in Iberdrola (The National)
• Texas wind energy fails again (National Review)
• Presidential projects on wind power flawed according to new book (KXXV)
• The trouble with turbines: an ill wind (Nature) 

• Feds make first arrest in BP Gulf Coast oil spill (CBS)
• Justices to hear appeal over controversial Arizona immigration law (CNN)
• Obama takes on college costs, eyes young voters (Bloomberg)
• Radioactive particles from Japan detected in California kelp (Los Angeles Times)
• Romney sweeps five northeast primaries (USA Today)
• Mitt Romney: Mothers should be required to work outside home or lose benefits (HuffingtonPost)

• Stirring Mexico volcano closes schools, raises alert (Reuters)
• Afghan girls in school after poison attack (BBC)
• Japan fears nuclear plant sits atop active geological fault (Reuters)
• Hollande and Sarkozy head for runoff in French election (NY Times)

September 16, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) – Congressman Duncan D. Hunter (R-El Cajon) has introduced H.R, 2952, a measure requiring immigration officials to expedite deportation of undocumented immigrants.