Lessons From Virginia

Guy Djoken

Last week, AP reported that Republican U.S. Senator John Warner says the GOP's loss of the state senate in Virginia was due in part to the narrow direction the party has taken in recent years.

That direction is something that has been troubling for many of us who have been wondering about the openness of the GOP to embrace minorities and work closely with them. As we ponder about the lessons to be learned from Virginia's elections held last Tuesday, it is worth noting that many of the Republican leaders running who made immigration a centerpiece of the fall campaign lost, despite the Washington Post poll in early October showing that 53 percent of Virginians wanted state and local governments to do "a lot" to deal with illegal immigration.

Some may see this as a contradiction but I don't. I think the people are often smarter that what those running for election sometimes give them credit for. Most are able to distinguish between those who are sincere about addressing a real issue that very few disagree on and the opportunistic demagogues attempting to use the illegal immigration issue to try to win votes.

Talking about those, Sen. Richard L. Saslaw (D-Fairfax) upcoming leader of the Virginia Senate told the Washington Post "…his chamber would not tolerate the same kind of "grandstanding."

I hope politicians all over the country from both parties take the lessons from Virginia to heart and refrain from using the immigration issue as wedge to divide our communities in their quest to get to and/or stay in power.

Our sincere call for moderation on the issue is very well framed in the excerpts below from a Police Chiefs Guide to Immigration Issues dated 8-3-2007. The full document may be accessed at the International Association of Chiefs of Police web site: www.theiacp.org

II. Historical Perspective

D. OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES FOR LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT

It is important that police become familiar with and competent in responding to their growing international populations. However, that familiarity requires additional educational and training efforts that translate into significant commitments of time and resources—scarce commodities, especially for smaller police organizations.

Immigrant communities present a challenge to the police, because while the largest proportion of the immigrant population has legal status in the United States, a smaller portion are illegal/undocumented entrants into the country. Police agencies and their officers are faced with a primary dilemma—how much focus to place on the smaller, illegal component of the immigrant community vs. the larger, legal one.

Looking at immigration, particularly illegal immigrants, from the perspective of crime and victimization causes yet another set of problems for the police—when crime occurs, the legal status of the perpetrator or the victim may become a critical concern. Research has shown that immigrants are more likely to be victimized than other members of the general population. In particular, illegal immigrants are often afraid to report crime to local authorities, making them easy targets for those with criminal intentions.

Questions the police may face include:

Should the police even inquire as to immigration status when dealing with a victim of a violent crime?

If the victim is an illegal immigrant, should ICE be contacted?

Is the offender a legal or illegal immigrant?

What steps should be taken with an illegal immigrant offender?

When and how should ICE be involved?

Will ICE have the capacity to respond?

One example of how difficult these issues become is in the area of human trafficking. When police determine that a trafficking situation exists, the victims of these crimes are likely to be illegal. Police must be extremely well trained in such complicated crimes in order to avoid responses that will re-victimize the victims and decrease their willingness to serve as witnesses to build strong cases against the traffickers.

The above text is only one section of what is an extensive guide for law enforcement and shows the complexity of the illegal immigration (undocumented worker) issues. It is important for the law enforcement community to continue to receive education and training in this area.

There is a considerable segment of the population that is living in fear of being targeted. An article by Ernesto Londoño and Theresa Vargas in the Washington Post on Friday, October 26, 2007; Page A01 titled "Robbers Stalk Hispanic Immigrants, Seeing Ideal Prey" clearly sustains that fear.

Data from the census and other sources also shows that for every ethnic group without exception, incarceration rates among young men are lowest for immigrants, even those who are the least educated. This is also true for the Mexicans, Salvadorans, and Guatemalans who make up the bulk of the undocumented population.

The problem of crime in the United States is not "caused" or even aggravated by immigrants as it is often claimed. We ask that our Sheriff's office engage the different cultural groups within Frederick County and work closely with them to build the needed relationship that may eventually lead to mutual trust and understanding.

This effort, in time will give the Sheriff's office an edge in fighting crime with the support of the general population.