Thu Oct 09, 2008 at 09:35:21 PM EDT
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Senator Menendez is teaming up with Ted Kennedy to develop immigration raid guidelines:The Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act calls for more stringent legal procedures when authorities execute immigration-related warrants.
The two Democratic lawmakers say lawful residents and U.S. citizens - in many cases, the American-born children of immigrants - are frequently caught up in raids and have been mistreated. Here's what Menendez had to say about the legislation:"We cannot allow the fervor to deport undocumented workers to take away the constitutional rights that belong to each and every U.S. citizen and legal resident," said Menendez, a Hoboken resident who is the son of Cuban immigrants. "And we can't allow it to cause the inhuman treatment of any human being. This is the United States of America, where we protect our citizens and treat our fellow humans with respect." The ACLU contends the law is necessary because U.S. Citizens are routinely detained in raids:"If ICE had conducted much more targeted enforcement actions that were against individuals named in warrants, this bill wouldn't be necessary," she said. "Instead, we're seeing raids in homes and worksites everywhere in the country, because there's no guidelines governing the conduct of these immigration raids. That's why national legislation is necessary." ICE defended their actions, but couldn't comment directly on legislation that was pending:"ICE fugitive operations officers follow applicable federal laws and ICE policies during all of our operations, which are conducted to minimize the risk to officers, those we arrest, and others we encounter during an operation," We'll have to wait and see what resistance the legislation meets in the Senate. |
| Jason Springer :: Menendez teams with Kennedy on Immigration raid guidelines |
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