Illegal Immigration, Trafficking and Unfunded Mandates
By Sheriff Jim Alderden
On April 25th, I had the privilege of attending a forum at the State Capitol concerning immigration enforcement. Among the presenters were Executive Director Peter Weir of the Colorado department of Public Safety, Mr. James Hearty of the United States Attorney’s Office, members of the Colorado State Patrol Immigration Enforcement Unit, Mr. Miles Madorin representing the Colorado District Attorney’s Council, Sheriff Grayson Robinson of Arapahoe County representing the County Sheriffs of Colorado, Aurora Chief Dan Oates representing the Colorado Association of Chiefs of Police, and Ms. Patricia Medige representing Colorado Network to End Human Trafficking. The observant reader will observe that one agency central to this discussion was notably absent: Immigration and Customs Enforcement better known as ICE.
Not surprisingly, everyone agreed that the illegal immigration is a problem looking for a solution and that there are many challenges to enforcing the immigration laws. The session was informative, but for those who came hoping for some solutions, this wasn’t the place. We did learn what the various agencies were doing and what some of the obstacles to enforcement are, but without ICE being at the table, the dialogue is sadly pretty meaningless. ICE reportedly was unable to attend due to a federal prohibition against their personnel discussing policy issues in a public forum. More on this in a moment.
The one positive thing that came out of this meeting was a presentation by the Colorado State Patrol on the successes of their recently formed Immigration Enforcement Unit. The unit became operational in July, 2007 and was formed to address the issues of human smuggling and trafficking on Colorado highways. Frankly, I was skeptical when this 23-member unit was formed, but they have had some impressive successes. From July 2007 through March 2008, the unit detained and processed 794 “undocumented foreign nationals,” the politically correct way of stating "illegal aliens." Of these, 21 were aggravated felons who were presented to the U.S. Attorney for federal prosecution and 146 were criminal “undocumented foreign nationals” with previous criminal histories in the United States.
Most importantly, the Immigration Enforcement Unit filed 11 state or federal cases involving human smuggling. Many of us, myself included, seldom think of human smuggling and trafficking occurring in the United States. This is supposed to be a third world issue, not an issue in a modern industrialized, enlightened country like ours. But it is. The sad truth is that many of the illegal immigrants are smuggled through in inhumane and dangerous conditions, conditions that occasionally result in death. More disturbing is the trafficking of foreign women and children who are forced to work as prostitutes. It is estimated that between 14,500 and 17,500 people are trafficked into the U.S. each year and that the criminal enterprises who engage in these activities generate over $9.5 million annually according to the FBI.
I must say, I was proud to be a Sheriff in Colorado as Sheriff Robinson got up to speak. Unlike the other presenters, and in true Sheriff fashion, he came out with both guns blazing, denouncing the absence of ICE. He correctly stated that the local ICE agents are a group of hard working and dedicated individuals who are doing their best under difficult circumstances. However, the ICE officials, bureaucrats and politicians within the beltway of Washington DC just don’t care. It really is shameful that the federal powers that be won’t address the issues with their state and local counterparts.
Sheriff Robinson spoke very eloquently about our concerns and inability to accept any additional state or federal unfunded mandates. He emphasized that local, state, regional and federal stakeholders must work together if meaningful solutions are to be implemented. CSOC Executive Director Don Christensen sent out a synopsis to our members as follows: Sheriff Robinson “then went on to state the county jail population of illegal immigrates is 9 to 11 percent of our total population. They are not in the local jails because they are illegal but because of the crimes they have committed in our communities. He stated the Sheriffs of Colorado should not be asked to enforce immigration laws that are the responsibilities of the federal government. He pointed out in order to effectively enforce federal immigration laws, Sheriffs must be adequately funded for training, equipment, staffing and additional detention bed space. Without adequate funding we will vigorously oppose any unfunded mandates; local communities cannot afford to support the federal responsibilities.” Well said!
The Sheriffs of Colorado are deeply concerned with the criminal impact of illegal immigration and the impact on our jails. Most of us are already facing overcrowding in our jails, and the state projects an additional shortage of 5,100 beds in the state prison system by 2012. Now, various pieces of legislation are being proposed by the state to address the issue. One goes so far as to propose that whenever an illegal immigrant is encountered by a law enforcement officer, he should be detained, incarcerated in the county jail, and turned over to ICE. One of the many problems with this is that there is no national database that is accessible and reliable to determine an individual’s immigration status. Further, the police and sheriff’s deputies could round up all the illegal aliens we encounter, but the state can’t compel ICE to take them (and they don’t have the room even if they wanted to), so they would essentially become permanent residents of our jails at the expense of the local taxpayers.
I wish I had a solution that could be implemented locally, but I don’t. We will continue to arrest and prosecute illegal aliens who commit criminal offenses, but doing so is like the proverbial spit in the ocean. It isn’t going to matter until the federal bureaucrats step up and do their job.
May 6, 2008