Immigration prosecutions rising
Half of caseload made up of offenses related to illegal crossings
Jun. 18, 2008 12:00 AM
Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON - The Bush administration has sharply ratcheted up prosecutions of illegal immigrants along the U.S.-Mexico border in the past year, with increases so dramatic that immigration offenses now account for as much as half of the nation's federal criminal caseload.
In the widening crackdown, administration officials prosecuted 9,350 illegal immigrants on federal criminal charges in March, a 73 percent increase over prosecutions last year and an all-time high, according to statistics released Tuesday. Convicted people have received jail sentences averaging about one month.
The prosecutions are among the most visible steps in a larger effort that includes work-site raids, increased border patrols and the use of technology and fences. Often controversial, the patchwork of measures represents the administration's response to failed congressional attempts last summer to overhaul federal laws.
Administration officials and conservative groups have lauded the surge in prosecutions. But critics say data shows illegal immigrants are still trying to enter the country. And some lawyers contend that the push to criminalize illegal immigrants is overwhelming a federal court system with limited resources and higher priorities.
Even so, administration officials announced this month that they would be funneling more resources toward the effort, called Operation Streamline.
"The results of this criminal prosecution initiative have been striking," said U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.
Chertoff's agency and the U.S. Justice Department jointly run Operation Streamline, recently announcing a plan to assign 64 prosecutors and 35 staff members to prosecutions along the Southwest border. "Operation Streamline" began as a pilot around Del Rio, Texas, in 2005, spreading to other areas. Under the program, officers and prosecutors practice "zero tolerance" and jail times can range from two weeks to six months.
"The reason this works is because these illegal migrants come to realize that violating the law will not simply send them back to try over again, but will require them to actually serve some short period of time in a jail or prison setting, and will brand them as having been violators of the law," Chertoff said. "That has a very significant deterrent impact."
The statistical analysis released Tuesday was compiled by Syracuse University's Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, considered an authoritative source for such figures, which called the increase "highly unusual."
Operation Streamline's larger aim is to give the administration another tool to use in its crackdown on illegal immigration, said Susan B. Long, a TRAC co-director and Syracuse University professor.
"This is an effort to use the federal criminal-justice system in immigration enforcement," Long said. "What it means is that immigration cases are dominating the federal court system these days. The volume of cases is really huge. This is a big deal."
Of 16,298 federal criminal prosecutions recorded nationwide in March, immigration accounted for more than half, Long said. The next highest number of prosecutions were for drug offenses at 2,674, followed by 702 prosecutions for white-collar crime.
Clearinghouse researchers found that all but 142 of the 9,350 new federal immigration prosecutions in March occurred in certain areas along the border with Mexico. Texas was most active, followed by southern California.
California is not formally a part of Operation Streamline. But prosecutions of people who smuggle illegal immigrants into the country along the California border have increased sharply in the past five years, nearly doubling to 118 cases in March.
The deluge of Operation Streamline prosecutions is overwhelming some lawyers involved in the process. Heather Williams, a federal public defender in Tucson, said the operation had a crushing effect when begun this year on a limited basis.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
Man accused in drug-selling case sought by U.S. Marshals
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 06.16.2008
The Fugitive: Jose Humberto Castro-Valenzuela.
When and Where: Dec. 7, 2002, in the 2700 block of South Thrasher Avenue, near South San Joaquin Avenue and West 36th Street.
Investigators: The U.S. Marshal's Service.
Summary: Castro-Valenzuela, 51, was trying to sell 10 kilograms of cocaine to an undercover agent at his home on Thrasher, said Tom Twohey,a Marshal's Service spokesman.
After he was taken into custody, Castro-Valenzuela agreed to a search of his home, which revealed 5 kilograms of cocaine in a bedroom dresser drawer, Twohey said.
Castro-Valenzuela was booked into jail on suspicion of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and was released on $20,000 bond.
The Latest Information: Castro-Valenzuela was scheduled to be in court in January 2003, but he did not show up.
"(Castro-Valenzuela) is believed to have fled to Mexico but has numerous family members in the Tucson area," Twohey said. "(He) is believed to be traveling back and forth from Mexico to Tucson using an alias."
Castro-Valenzuela is 5 feet, 11 inches tall, weighs 170 pounds and has brown eyes and gray hair.
How You Can Help: Call 88-CRIME, the anonymous tip line of the Pima County Attorney's Office.
The Fugitive: Jose Humberto Castro-Valenzuela.
When and Where: Dec. 7, 2002, in the 2700 block of South Thrasher Avenue, near South San Joaquin Avenue and West 36th Street.
Investigators: The U.S. Marshal's Service.
Summary: Castro-Valenzuela, 51, was trying to sell 10 kilograms of cocaine to an undercover agent at his home on Thrasher, said Tom Twohey,a Marshal's Service spokesman.
After he was taken into custody, Castro-Valenzuela agreed to a search of his home, which revealed 5 kilograms of cocaine in a bedroom dresser drawer, Twohey said.
Castro-Valenzuela was booked into jail on suspicion of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and was released on $20,000 bond.
The Latest Information: Castro-Valenzuela was scheduled to be in court in January 2003, but he did not show up.
"(Castro-Valenzuela) is believed to have fled to Mexico but has numerous family members in the Tucson area," Twohey said. "(He) is believed to be traveling back and forth from Mexico to Tucson using an alias."
Castro-Valenzuela is 5 feet, 11 inches tall, weighs 170 pounds and has brown eyes and gray hair.
How You Can Help: Call 88-CRIME, the anonymous tip line of the Pima County Attorney's Office.
16 migrants, hidden pot found by agents in Arizona
FERNANDA ECHÁVARRI
Tucson Citizen
Sixteen illegal immigrants, two with criminal records; 2,600 pounds of marijuana; and human skeletal remains were found by Border Patrol on Thursday, authorities said.
Agents with the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector found an abandoned Chevrolet truck on the Tohono O'odham Nation Thursday morning, U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman Rob Daniels said.
The truck was hidden under thick desert brush and had 2,600 pounds of marijuana inside, Daniels said.
Though agents searched the area for a driver, nobody was found.
In the afternoon, agents found 15 illegal immigrants northwest of Sasabe, Daniels said.
Agents took them into custody and database checks showed one had a warrant for his arrest in Alabama, he said.
The man, originally from El Salvador, was wanted on accusations of sexual assault and rape in 2006, Daniels said. He was turned over to Tucson police for extradition to Alabama.
Later Thursday afternoon, agents found another man from El Salvador near Sells.
Daniels said that man was convicted of aggravated child sexual assault in 2000. He was in a Texas jail for five years, and was deported February 2005.
The man will be prosecuted for illegal re-entry after deportation, Daniels said.
The Border Patrol did not release the names of either of the men from El Salvador.
At 8 p.m. Thursday, members of the Border Patrol Search, Trauma And Rescue team found human skeletal remains southwest of Three Points.
"Unfortunately these are the types of things that happen too frequently," Daniels said. "It's the harsh reality of the desert."
Tucson Citizen
Sixteen illegal immigrants, two with criminal records; 2,600 pounds of marijuana; and human skeletal remains were found by Border Patrol on Thursday, authorities said.
Agents with the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector found an abandoned Chevrolet truck on the Tohono O'odham Nation Thursday morning, U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman Rob Daniels said.
The truck was hidden under thick desert brush and had 2,600 pounds of marijuana inside, Daniels said.
Though agents searched the area for a driver, nobody was found.
In the afternoon, agents found 15 illegal immigrants northwest of Sasabe, Daniels said.
Agents took them into custody and database checks showed one had a warrant for his arrest in Alabama, he said.
The man, originally from El Salvador, was wanted on accusations of sexual assault and rape in 2006, Daniels said. He was turned over to Tucson police for extradition to Alabama.
Later Thursday afternoon, agents found another man from El Salvador near Sells.
Daniels said that man was convicted of aggravated child sexual assault in 2000. He was in a Texas jail for five years, and was deported February 2005.
The man will be prosecuted for illegal re-entry after deportation, Daniels said.
The Border Patrol did not release the names of either of the men from El Salvador.
At 8 p.m. Thursday, members of the Border Patrol Search, Trauma And Rescue team found human skeletal remains southwest of Three Points.
"Unfortunately these are the types of things that happen too frequently," Daniels said. "It's the harsh reality of the desert."
Man arrested in fatal stabbing of rude restaurant patron
John Coté, Chronicle Staff Writer
Monday, June 16, 2008
(06-16) 18:07 PDT DALY CITY -- A San Francisco man is expected to be charged with murder Tuesday in San Mateo County Superior Court for allegedly stabbing a fellow patron at a Daly City restaurant after the victim made crass comments about a waitress, police said.
Both Jesus Hernandez, 33, and Carlos Padilla-Ovedio, 25, were at the Durango restaurant about 5 p.m. Friday when Hernandez apparently began making "rude comments to the female waitress," police Lt. Jay Morena said.
Both men were "semi-regulars" at the small restaurant, Morena said.
After hearing Hernandez's comments, Padilla-Ovedio stabbed him in the torso and ran out the door, police said. Hernandez was taken to San Francisco General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
It was unclear whether the motive was a desire to be "a knight in shining armor saving the damsel in distress, machismo, or he just got tired hearing this guy popping off," Morena said.
Employees knew Padilla-Ovedio only by his first name and described him as an illegal immigrant from Honduras who was working as a carpet installer, police said.
Detectives, with a sketch of the suspect, were able to track him down Sunday afternoon at a home on Revere Street in San Francisco and arrested him without incident, police said.
Monday, June 16, 2008
(06-16) 18:07 PDT DALY CITY -- A San Francisco man is expected to be charged with murder Tuesday in San Mateo County Superior Court for allegedly stabbing a fellow patron at a Daly City restaurant after the victim made crass comments about a waitress, police said.
Both Jesus Hernandez, 33, and Carlos Padilla-Ovedio, 25, were at the Durango restaurant about 5 p.m. Friday when Hernandez apparently began making "rude comments to the female waitress," police Lt. Jay Morena said.
Both men were "semi-regulars" at the small restaurant, Morena said.
After hearing Hernandez's comments, Padilla-Ovedio stabbed him in the torso and ran out the door, police said. Hernandez was taken to San Francisco General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
It was unclear whether the motive was a desire to be "a knight in shining armor saving the damsel in distress, machismo, or he just got tired hearing this guy popping off," Morena said.
Employees knew Padilla-Ovedio only by his first name and described him as an illegal immigrant from Honduras who was working as a carpet installer, police said.
Detectives, with a sketch of the suspect, were able to track him down Sunday afternoon at a home on Revere Street in San Francisco and arrested him without incident, police said.
Mexican suspected of making fake IDs arrested
Man suspected of making fake IDs arrested
by Lisa Halverstadt - Jun. 16, 2008 06:19 PM
The Arizona Republic
A man suspected of making fake IDs was arrested at about on Saturday in Tempe.
Julio Cesar Carbajal-Cortez, 21, of Mexico, was pulled over in the 300 block of Priest Drive and admitted to having a fake ID, police said.
After searching his vehicle, police found two Arizona drivers' licenses, one Social Security card, three Mexican drivers' licenses and a stack of 200 blank plastic cards, according to police reports. The cards had holograms of the Department of Justice stamp and the words "U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Services," according reports.
Carbajal-Cortez told police he was in the process of delivering forged documents that he usually sells for $100 to $120.
After Carbajal-Cortez allowed police to search his residence, they reported finding 500 business cards, a computer and more blank plastic cards, according to reports.
He was arrested on suspicion of possession of forged documents, possession of forged instruments, aggravated taking of identity and trafficking with the identity of another.
by Lisa Halverstadt - Jun. 16, 2008 06:19 PM
The Arizona Republic
A man suspected of making fake IDs was arrested at about on Saturday in Tempe.
Julio Cesar Carbajal-Cortez, 21, of Mexico, was pulled over in the 300 block of Priest Drive and admitted to having a fake ID, police said.
After searching his vehicle, police found two Arizona drivers' licenses, one Social Security card, three Mexican drivers' licenses and a stack of 200 blank plastic cards, according to police reports. The cards had holograms of the Department of Justice stamp and the words "U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Services," according reports.
Carbajal-Cortez told police he was in the process of delivering forged documents that he usually sells for $100 to $120.
After Carbajal-Cortez allowed police to search his residence, they reported finding 500 business cards, a computer and more blank plastic cards, according to reports.
He was arrested on suspicion of possession of forged documents, possession of forged instruments, aggravated taking of identity and trafficking with the identity of another.
Mexicans moving across border to flee widespread drug wars
by Chris Hawley - Jun. 16, 2008 12:00 AM
Republic Mexico City Bureau
MEXICO CITY - In February, Salvador Urbina decided he was tired of the shootouts, the kidnappings and the military patrols in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juárez.
So he put his house up for sale, packed up his car and moved his wife and children to El Paso, Texas, joining a growing stream of professionals who are relocating to the United States to get away from Mexico's drug wars.
"I didn't want to leave," said Urbina, a lawyer. "But there's a very deep psychosis developing in Juárez. Criminals are taking advantage of the situation there. Every day I worried about the safety of my wife and family."
In U.S. cities along the border, middle-class Mexicans are buying homes, renting apartments and even moving their businesses across the border, say real-estate agents, chambers of commerce and city officials.
Arizona cities have been an exception, because neighboring Sonora state has been mostly quiet compared with other parts of the border, said Marco Antonio Garcia, director of economic development for Nogales, Sonora. But in hotspots like Tijuana, Juárez and Nuevo Laredo, business officials say the emigration is picking up.
Falling housing prices in the United States are part of the draw, said Mireya Durazo, a real-estate agent in San Diego, across the border from Tijuana. But the main driver is a wave of violence unleashed by Mexico's 18-month-old crackdown on drug cartels, she said.
"First it was the dentists, then lawyers and doctors . . . now it's teachers, owners of little stores, people from the working class," Durazo said.
Drug gangs are increasingly bringing civilians into the fray as they battle soldiers and each other for control of plazas, or drug-smuggling corridors.
In all, some 4,000 people have died in drug-related violence since President Felipe Calderón began sending troops to attack the cartels in December 2006, according to a tally by the Reforma newspaper. Polls released recently by Reforma and the El Universal newspaper show most Mexicans believe the government is losing the battle.
In Tijuana, about 300 physicians rallied on May 21 to protest a string of kidnappings and threats against doctors for treating police and rival smugglers. In all, the city of 1.3 million has seen 118 kidnappings this year, according to Hope Against Forced Disappearances and Impunity in Tijuana, a civic group.
In Ciudad Juárez, a video appeared on YouTube.com on May 27 claiming responsibility for the killing of a nightclub owner and the torching of two bars. The video was signed by "La Línea," a band of enforcers for drug trafficker Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, and it warned businessmen in Juárez that they would soon be contacted for protection money.
Real-estate companies have seized upon such incidents to market homes on the U.S. side of the line.
"Are you looking for a safer place to live?" says the Web site of Latin Credit, a real-estate company in San Diego that caters to Mexican residents. "Live in tranquility!" says an ad for El Paso homes in the Diario de la Frontera newspaper of Ciudad Juárez, which is just across the border from El Paso.
Leaving home
Urbina, a 45-year-old lawyer, occasionally teaches courses at the police academy in Juárez. After Calderón flooded Juárez with troops, Urbina and other lawyers got death threats.
Earlier this year, drug traffickers launched a wave of police killings in Juárez. When some of his former police- academy students started showing up dead, Urbina knew it was time to go. Urbina now commutes to work in Ciudad Juárez every morning and returns to El Paso every night. He spends 20 hours a week stuck in traffic waiting to cross the Rio Grande.
"It's terrible, with the gasoline (prices) and the air pollution," he said. "But a lot of people are doing it now. I think the problem of insecurity is the worst it has been."
Oscar Orozco, a partner in an accounting firm in Juárez, said four of the firm's nine partners now live on the Texas side.
The crisis in the U.S. housing market has made homes more affordable for these upper-middle-class Mexicans, said Clara Jaramillo, president of Latin Credit. Her company has sold about 50 homes in the past year to Mexicans leaving Tijuana.
In recent months, the number of Mexicans calling the company has tripled, she said.
Setting up shop
To avoid the cross-border commute, some Mexicans are trying to bring their businesses with them, said Steve Ahlenius, president of the McAllen Chamber of Commerce in south Texas.
About 70 percent of the people approaching the chamber for help in setting up a business are Mexican nationals, compared with about 30 percent two years ago, he said. McAllen lies across the border from Reynosa, Mexico.
Francisco Monroy, owner of a wholesale company that sells blankets and sheets in Tijuana, said he plans to open a warehouse in San Diego so he can get an investor visa.
Monroy moved across the border in September after being kidnapped for ransom. He said his family paid "a fortune" for his release.
"It totally changes your life," he said. "I said to my family, 'Let's get out of here, because here there's no security, no support from the authorities of any kind.' "
Monroy is in the United States on a tourist visa and is running his company by telephone. An investor visa, which is given to people who open businesses and employ people in the U.S., would allow him to live in San Diego indefinitely.
The number of investor visas, known as E-1 or E-2 visas, issued to Mexicans grew 42 percent from 2005 to 2007, from 1,321 to 1,874.
The violence has also discouraged some Americans from crossing the border to eat or shop in Mexico, Ahlenius said. In response, some Mexican restaurateurs and shop owners are opening U.S. branches to recapture their clientele.
Jesús Martínez, owner of the El Pastor restaurant in Reynosa, said his U.S. customers had declined by 70 percent. He is opening a branch of the same name in McAllen.
The Los Arcos restaurant in Tijuana is doing the same in San Diego, said promotion manager Hugo Vidaurrázaga.
In Laredo, Pavel Hernández said he decided to open his new restaurant, El Real de México, on the U.S. side because he wanted more stability.
"I've seen how businesses, businessmen and their families end up bankrupt from being kidnapped or robbed, and many of them end up emigrating," Hernández said.
"It's sad that investors are investing here and not in Mexico," he said. "My dream was to open a restaurant in Mexico. But I've abandoned that dream because, well, you see how things are."
Reporter Sergio Solache contributed to this article.
Republic Mexico City Bureau
MEXICO CITY - In February, Salvador Urbina decided he was tired of the shootouts, the kidnappings and the military patrols in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juárez.
So he put his house up for sale, packed up his car and moved his wife and children to El Paso, Texas, joining a growing stream of professionals who are relocating to the United States to get away from Mexico's drug wars.
"I didn't want to leave," said Urbina, a lawyer. "But there's a very deep psychosis developing in Juárez. Criminals are taking advantage of the situation there. Every day I worried about the safety of my wife and family."
In U.S. cities along the border, middle-class Mexicans are buying homes, renting apartments and even moving their businesses across the border, say real-estate agents, chambers of commerce and city officials.
Arizona cities have been an exception, because neighboring Sonora state has been mostly quiet compared with other parts of the border, said Marco Antonio Garcia, director of economic development for Nogales, Sonora. But in hotspots like Tijuana, Juárez and Nuevo Laredo, business officials say the emigration is picking up.
Falling housing prices in the United States are part of the draw, said Mireya Durazo, a real-estate agent in San Diego, across the border from Tijuana. But the main driver is a wave of violence unleashed by Mexico's 18-month-old crackdown on drug cartels, she said.
"First it was the dentists, then lawyers and doctors . . . now it's teachers, owners of little stores, people from the working class," Durazo said.
Drug gangs are increasingly bringing civilians into the fray as they battle soldiers and each other for control of plazas, or drug-smuggling corridors.
In all, some 4,000 people have died in drug-related violence since President Felipe Calderón began sending troops to attack the cartels in December 2006, according to a tally by the Reforma newspaper. Polls released recently by Reforma and the El Universal newspaper show most Mexicans believe the government is losing the battle.
In Tijuana, about 300 physicians rallied on May 21 to protest a string of kidnappings and threats against doctors for treating police and rival smugglers. In all, the city of 1.3 million has seen 118 kidnappings this year, according to Hope Against Forced Disappearances and Impunity in Tijuana, a civic group.
In Ciudad Juárez, a video appeared on YouTube.com on May 27 claiming responsibility for the killing of a nightclub owner and the torching of two bars. The video was signed by "La Línea," a band of enforcers for drug trafficker Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, and it warned businessmen in Juárez that they would soon be contacted for protection money.
Real-estate companies have seized upon such incidents to market homes on the U.S. side of the line.
"Are you looking for a safer place to live?" says the Web site of Latin Credit, a real-estate company in San Diego that caters to Mexican residents. "Live in tranquility!" says an ad for El Paso homes in the Diario de la Frontera newspaper of Ciudad Juárez, which is just across the border from El Paso.
Leaving home
Urbina, a 45-year-old lawyer, occasionally teaches courses at the police academy in Juárez. After Calderón flooded Juárez with troops, Urbina and other lawyers got death threats.
Earlier this year, drug traffickers launched a wave of police killings in Juárez. When some of his former police- academy students started showing up dead, Urbina knew it was time to go. Urbina now commutes to work in Ciudad Juárez every morning and returns to El Paso every night. He spends 20 hours a week stuck in traffic waiting to cross the Rio Grande.
"It's terrible, with the gasoline (prices) and the air pollution," he said. "But a lot of people are doing it now. I think the problem of insecurity is the worst it has been."
Oscar Orozco, a partner in an accounting firm in Juárez, said four of the firm's nine partners now live on the Texas side.
The crisis in the U.S. housing market has made homes more affordable for these upper-middle-class Mexicans, said Clara Jaramillo, president of Latin Credit. Her company has sold about 50 homes in the past year to Mexicans leaving Tijuana.
In recent months, the number of Mexicans calling the company has tripled, she said.
Setting up shop
To avoid the cross-border commute, some Mexicans are trying to bring their businesses with them, said Steve Ahlenius, president of the McAllen Chamber of Commerce in south Texas.
About 70 percent of the people approaching the chamber for help in setting up a business are Mexican nationals, compared with about 30 percent two years ago, he said. McAllen lies across the border from Reynosa, Mexico.
Francisco Monroy, owner of a wholesale company that sells blankets and sheets in Tijuana, said he plans to open a warehouse in San Diego so he can get an investor visa.
Monroy moved across the border in September after being kidnapped for ransom. He said his family paid "a fortune" for his release.
"It totally changes your life," he said. "I said to my family, 'Let's get out of here, because here there's no security, no support from the authorities of any kind.' "
Monroy is in the United States on a tourist visa and is running his company by telephone. An investor visa, which is given to people who open businesses and employ people in the U.S., would allow him to live in San Diego indefinitely.
The number of investor visas, known as E-1 or E-2 visas, issued to Mexicans grew 42 percent from 2005 to 2007, from 1,321 to 1,874.
The violence has also discouraged some Americans from crossing the border to eat or shop in Mexico, Ahlenius said. In response, some Mexican restaurateurs and shop owners are opening U.S. branches to recapture their clientele.
Jesús Martínez, owner of the El Pastor restaurant in Reynosa, said his U.S. customers had declined by 70 percent. He is opening a branch of the same name in McAllen.
The Los Arcos restaurant in Tijuana is doing the same in San Diego, said promotion manager Hugo Vidaurrázaga.
In Laredo, Pavel Hernández said he decided to open his new restaurant, El Real de México, on the U.S. side because he wanted more stability.
"I've seen how businesses, businessmen and their families end up bankrupt from being kidnapped or robbed, and many of them end up emigrating," Hernández said.
"It's sad that investors are investing here and not in Mexico," he said. "My dream was to open a restaurant in Mexico. But I've abandoned that dream because, well, you see how things are."
Reporter Sergio Solache contributed to this article.
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