Newsflash
Next MBB MeetingsORGANIZATIONAL MEETINGDate: Monday, July 9, 2007
Time: 6:00 PM
Location: Graceada Park
401 Needham Street
Modesto, CA 95354
Map: 401 Needham Street
Directions:
From Southbound 99 (Coming from North) exit Kansas Ave., L - Kansas Ave., R - N Franklin St., L - Beech St., SR - Needham St. From Northbound 99 (Coming from South) exit CA-132/Vernalis/CA-108/Central Modesto, SL - 6th St., R - K St., L - 15th St., SL - Needham St./CA-108
EDUCATIONAL MEETING Date: Monday, July 16, 2007
Time: 6:00 PM
Location: Beard Brook Park
South Morton Blvd.
Modesto, CA 95354
Map: [1100-1157] S. Morton Blvd.
Directions:
From Southbound 99 (Coming from North) take Tuolumne Blvd. exit, L - Tuolumne Blvd., SR - B St., R - 9th St., SL - Morton Blvd. From Northbound 99 (Coming from South) take Tuolumne Blvd. exit, L - Tuolumne Blvd., SR - B St., R - 9th St., SL - Morton Blvd.
ORGANIZATIONALMEETING Date: Monday, July 23, 2007
Time: 6:00 PM
Location: Oregon Drive Park
(East) Modesto, CA 95354
Map: 1650 Oregon Drive (Not exact)
Directions: At the corner of Oregon Drive and Empire Avenue |
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County sanctuary proposed |
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Written by Administrator
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Friday, 20 July 2007 |
Modbee.com
County sanctuary proposed
By EVE HIGHTOWER
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A civil rights group called the Brown Berets wants Stanislaus County to be an "immigrant sanctuary."
The Brown Berets wants:
The county to stop working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Law enforcement to stop asking about people's legal status.
The county to notify the Brown Berets and other community groups when federal agents are in the area so the groups can advise illegal immigrants.
The Brown Berets is a Latino rights advocacy group that grew out of the civil rights movement of the 1960s. The Modesto Brown Berets' motto is "Culture, Community, Revolution."
Making Stanislaus County a sanctuary "would make certain that those who are living here are no longer treated like animals, being forced to live underground by the fear of deportation," said Brown Berets member Ricardo Gil Jr. He runs the activist Web site aztlanrising.com that has organized immigration protests.
The Brown Berets sent a copy of its proposed ordinance to each county supervisor.
County Chief Executive Officer Rick Robinson declined the group's request this week, encouraging it to work with federal representatives instead.
In a phone interview, Robinson said immigration is beyond the supervisors' authority and the ordinance would limit the county.
"Counties don't make laws that would override federal and state laws," he said. "With this (ordinance), local government officials would be precluded from cooperating with ICE. That's certainly not good pol-icy."
The Brown Berets then submitted their request to Modesto City Council members Wednesday.
City Manager George Britton, who hadn't seen the request, said it could be discussed during a meeting if the group asks the city clerk to put the proposal on the council agenda.
If the council were to pass the ordinance, it wouldn't be the first to do so. Some cities already have achieved sanctuary status.
In May, the Watsonville City Council agreed to the group's three points. In April, San Francisco and Oakland reaffirmed their pledges that no city em-ployee will participate in federal immigration raids. They have been sanctuaries for 21 years.
New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston and Denver also are among a growing list of cities large and small that claim immigrant sanctuary status by, to some extent, protecting immigrants labeled "illegal" by federal law. Most commonly, sanctuary cities agree not to ask people about their immigration status.
Deputies don't routinely ask
Sheriff Adam Christianson said Stanislaus County deputies don't routinely ask about people's status.
"Our investigators aren't worried about immigration status," he said. "They're worried about protecting everyone," he said.
The Brown Berets also want Stanislaus County to cease working with ICE.
"We currently have an ICE agent assigned to our county and work closely with him and are happy to do so," said Chief Dep-uty District Attorney John Goold.
That relationship does not include helping with raids.
"Our resources are stretched thin trying to catch real criminals," Goold said.
While immigration enforcement isn't local agencies' responsibility, they can cross-designate deputies to function as ICE agents. Christianson said he isn't interested in doing that with deputies on the street.
"It's not my job," he said, adding that he doesn't care about people's immigration status unless they're in jail.
Brown Berets also wants the county to notify groups when ICE is in the area. Christianson said that's not his responsibility either.
Local agencies may not know when ICE is in the area, said Modesto police Sgt. Craig Gund-lach.
"They have federal jurisdiction. They don't have a duty to notify us or anyone of what they are doing," he added.
Bee staff writer Eve Hightower can be reached at 578-2382, or
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Posted on 06/23/07 00:00:00
http://www.modbee.com/local/story/13720370p-14306089c.html
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Last Updated ( Friday, 20 July 2007 )
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