In an attempt to stave off bankruptcy, a small town in Georgia persuades ICE to house detained undocumented immigrants. On the American side of the Arizona border two armed gunman opened fire on a truck carrying undocumented immigrants, killing two. Immigrant and Border hardliner Paul Babeau is under scrutiny as he is sued by a former co worker and is under investigation from the Federal Government for campaign violations.
Importing Undocumented Immigrants-Into Private Georgia Prisons: In an attempt to stave off bankruptcy of a local prison, a small town in Georgia persuades ICE to house detained undocumented immigrants. “Interesting piece in The Nation on the attempt in Ocilla, Ga., to balance off the loss of illegal immigrant farm labor by importing illegal immigrants – into a private detention facility. From the lede: ICE’s reliance on facilities like the Irwin County Detention Center has put small rural towns at the center of one of today’s most contentious policy arguments—how to enforce immigration law. A yearlong investigation … shows how much politics has come to rule detention policy. Even as Georgia and Alabama passed harsh new immigration laws last year designed to keep out undocumented immigrants, documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act reveal that politicians from both states were lobbying hard to bring immigrant detainees in.”
Gunmen kill two Undocumented Immigrants in Arizona: On the American side of the Arizona border two armed gunman opened fire on a truck carrying undocumented immigrants, killing two. “Two illegal immigrants were shot to death by camouflaged gunmen northwest of Tucson in an incident evoking a pair of 2007 attacks, Arizona authorities said Wednesday. One of the victims was identified as Gerardo Perez-Ruiz, 39, of Toluca, Mexico. The second man remained unidentified but was thought to be from Guatemala. They were among a group of 20 to 30 people riding in the bed of a Chevy truck on Sunday when men with rifles ambushed them, Pima County Sheriff’s Deputy Dawn Barkman said in an interview. The area, near the town of Eloy, is known for immigrant-smuggling, she said.”
Sheriff Babeu faces federal investigation, other probes: Immigrant and Border hardliner Paul Babeau is under scrutiny as he is sued by a former co worker and is under investigation from the Federal Government for campaign violations. “The worries are mounting for Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu and his team. Babeu, who is running for the Republican nomination for Congress in congressional district 4, was sued this week by one of his own detectives, as I reported here. But that’s just the latest concern. Perhaps the biggest is an investigation by the U.S. Office of Special Counsel. This office is looking into possible violations of the Hatch Act, which prohibits political activities by public officials working in their official capacities at agencies receiving federal funds. On March 14, the office requested that Pinal County perform computer searches, email checks and other information regarding five sheriff’s office employees: Babeu, Chief Deputy Steve Henry, community relations director Cheryl Chase, communications director Tim Gaffney and spokesman Elias Johnson.
