NEWS  BYTES

Last week we had a story about corruption and its effects on the INS.  The story was based on part of a six-part series by the Portland Oregonian.  Those interested in the rest of the articles in the series can find them at www.oregonlive.com/special/current/ins.ssf.

*********

Last week the INS announced that it would be moving female detainees from the Krome Detention Center in Miami to an area jail in an effort to secure the women’s safety.  The move has begun, and while conditions in the jail are better than those at Krome, the move has not been without incident.  Shortly after the first detainees arrived at the jail, some of them tried to speak with an attorney from the Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center and the attorney was told to leave.  Eventually, however, the detainees were allowed to meet with attorneys freely.  The detainees are being kept in two separate areas, one for detainees who are facing deportation because of criminal convictions, and the other for non-criminal detainees.

*********

The health department of Randolph County, North Carolina runs a free prenatal care clinic that provides services to many indigent community members.  Unfortunately, the combination of a growing Hispanic population and a shortage of Spanish translators may force the clinic to begin charging fees or even shut its doors.  The shortage of interpreters means that prenatal care for many Spanish-speaking immigrants is often delayed.  The clinic cannot afford to hire its own interpreters.  While there is state money available to hire translators, it is designated for health services for migrant workers, and most Hispanics in Randolph County have established residences there.

*********

An INS supervisor has been found not guilty of striking a subordinate following a trial last week.  According to the judge who presided over the trial, any contact between the two was unintended.  Agent Demetrios Georgakopoulos was accused by Ziad Jiries of grabbing him by the throat after he walked into a meeting trying to get an order to arrest someone.  Georgakopoulos’ attorney said that Jiries made the accusation because he was angry at being passed over for promotion.  Jiries has also filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and a lawsuit in federal court.

*********

The Albuquerque, New Mexico city council this week unanimously passed a resolution declaring Albuquerque an “immigrant-friendly city” and funding a new agency to help immigrants, both documented and undocumented obtain access to basic social services.  The city will provide ,000 over the next six months to fund a program that will help immigrants obtain access to education, housing, health care and other services.  The bill requires the extension of city services to all immigrants “to the fullest extent allowed by federal and state law.”  The city is also barred from using city resources to identify people’s immigration status, and cannot apprehend people who are undocumented unless required to do so by federal law.

*********

Police in Prince George’s County, Maryland have begun a campaign in concert with area banks to encourage immigrant workers to deposit their money in banks rather than carrying it with them.  The reason for the campaign is the increasing number of robberies committed against Hispanics, who are seen as easy targets because they are hesitant to use banks or to report crimes because they may have an undocumented immigration status.  Participating banks are explaining that they do not care about a person’s immigration status and that they only need one piece of identification, such as a driver’s license, to open an account.

*********

The National Conference of Catholic Bishops has donated 0,000 for programs designed to help needy immigrants.  The funds will be distributed by the Immigrant Training Project, a group that helps immigrants find housing and employment, and will be administered by the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), which is part of the National Conference. 

*********

Three leaders of the Word of Faith Outreach Church in Maryland are on trial for allegedly bringing foreign students into the country to attend missionary school and then forcing them to work in menial jobs.  Defense attorneys argued in closing statements this week that there was no violation of immigration laws because the church views work as a fundamental tenet.  More than a year ago the three pled guilty to immigration violations, but are on trial again after an appeals court ruled that they should be able to present the work defense, which the trial judge had initially barred.

*********

A Louisiana woman has pled guilty to hiring undocumented immigrants to remove asbestos from construction sites.  Maria Shumaker faces up to six months in prison and fines up to 00.  Other executives of Construction Personnel, Inc. in Colorado and Tennessee have already pled guilty to hiring undocumented workers to remove asbestos.  Asbestos is known to cause mesothelioma, a very deadly form of lung cancer.  Shumaker has agreed to cooperate with authorities in the investigation.  The company could be fined as much as million.

*********

An examiner in the INS Chicago District Office was arrested this week on charges that he accepted sex in exchange for approving permanent residence applications.  Russell Mendez pled not guilty to two counts of bribery related to two separate incidents.  No information on the green card applicants has been released.  If convicted, Mendez faces up to two years in prison and a fine of 0,000.

*********

The Archdiocese of Atlanta has hired a new attorney to serve as the interim director of its refugee resettlement program, which has come under fire in recent months.  Susan Pavlin, an immigration attorney, has extensive experience dealing with refugees.  Pavlin replaces Bui Van Tam, who was the program director for 21 years.  A large part of the criticism of the program came because it was learned that Tam was placing refugees in apartment buildings partially owned by his wife.

*********

Mel Martinez, a Cuban-American immigrant who came to the US as part of Operation Pedro Pan, the US effort to get children out of Cuba after Castro came to power, has been named by President-elect George W. Bush to head the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

*********

Three guards at the Hillsborough County jail in Manchester, New Hampshire were arrested this week on charges that they sexually assaulted female INS detainees.  The offenses are alleged to have occurred in 1998.  None of the three women involved are still at the jail.  In January of this year, US Attorneys ordered the transfer of more than 250 INS detainees from the facility because of allegations that guards were having sex with female inmates.