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Jamiel Shaw Sr. weeps while standing with his wife Anita Shaw before the Los Angeles City Council Tuesday. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times / April 8, 2008) |
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Special Order 40
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The attack on the Los Angeles Police Department's Special Order 40 -- which limits when officers can ask about the citizenship status of suspects -- has come largely but not exclusively from anti-illegal-immigration forces.
But now the order has a new and potentially potent foe: the family of Jamiel Shaw Jr., the Los Angeles High football star who was killed last month. Police have charged a gang member who was in the country illegally with Shaw's slaying.
Jamiel Shaw Sr. and his wife, Anita, a U.S. Army sergeant who has been serving in Iraq, appeared before the City Council on Tuesday arguing for changes to the 30-year-old Los Angeles Police Department policy as it pertains to gang members suspected of being illegal immigrants.
Shaw Sr. proposed that LAPD policy be changed so officers would routinely check the immigration status of known gang members who are crime suspects -- which he said would make it easier to immediately deport them.
"If you're a gang member who is suspected of committing a crime, why can't they check a database at the police station to see if you're here illegally? Why can't they check a database at the jail?" Shaw asked.
Shaw's son was killed March 2 while walking home -- allegedly by Pedro Espinoza, who had been released from County Jail just hours earlier. Police say Shaw was picked at random -- perhaps as part of a gang loyalty test.
Shaw, who spoke with tears running down his face, said repeatedly that he did not want to target Latinos.
The family's appearance drew rousing cheers in the council chambers.
Many police, political leaders and immigration rights groups oppose changing Special Order 40, arguing that it would make illegal immigrants wary of cooperating with law enforcement.
"We need information from the community to protect and police this city," said LAPD Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell. "The unintended consequence of local police enforcing immigration laws is that many [potential witnesses] in the most crime-ridden areas, where information is the hardest to come by, will be even more hesitant to come forward."
Instituted in 1979 by then-Chief Daryl F. Gates, Special Order 40 states that "officers shall not initiate police action with the objective of discovering the alien status of a person."
The order was meant to encourage immigrants -- be they eyewitnesses or victims -- to come forward.
But Special Order 40 has also been highly controversial and often misinterpreted. Many people, including some LAPD officers, believed the order completely prohibited asking about a person's immigration status, which became an issue several years ago when police began seeing an influx of Central American gang members who had previously been deported. Two anti-illegal-immigration groups have sued the LAPD to have the rule killed.
Although police officers cannot stop people for the sole purpose of asking about immigration status, they may ask about it as part of an arrest or booking process.
LAPD Deputy Chief Charlie Beck said the department has been aggressive in identifying gang members who are repeatedly arrested and deported, then reenter the United States to commit new crimes.
Police said Shaw's alleged killer was an 18th Street gang member. Espinoza spent nearly four months in Los Angeles County Jail for exhibiting a firearm and resisting arrest before his release March 1.
Virginia Kice, a spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said Espinoza was born in Mexico and came to the U.S. with his family at age 4.
Authorities attempt to identify illegal immigrants for possible detention when they are processed through the jail. But Sheriff's Department spokesman Steve Whitmore said that at the time of his previous arrest, Espinoza told Culver City police and sheriff's officials that he was born in Los Angeles.
Kice said her agency has no record of contact with Espinoza before his arrest in the Shaw case. Since then, ICE officials have researched his background and listed him as a potential candidate for deportation.
Kice said that determining the immigration status of suspects is difficult because there is no comprehensive database. Nonetheless, police and immigration officials have identified 20,000 illegal immigrants in Southern California jails between December 2006 and January 2008.
But now the order has a new and potentially potent foe: the family of Jamiel Shaw Jr., the Los Angeles High football star who was killed last month. Police have charged a gang member who was in the country illegally with Shaw's slaying.
Jamiel Shaw Sr. and his wife, Anita, a U.S. Army sergeant who has been serving in Iraq, appeared before the City Council on Tuesday arguing for changes to the 30-year-old Los Angeles Police Department policy as it pertains to gang members suspected of being illegal immigrants.
Shaw Sr. proposed that LAPD policy be changed so officers would routinely check the immigration status of known gang members who are crime suspects -- which he said would make it easier to immediately deport them.
"If you're a gang member who is suspected of committing a crime, why can't they check a database at the police station to see if you're here illegally? Why can't they check a database at the jail?" Shaw asked.
Shaw's son was killed March 2 while walking home -- allegedly by Pedro Espinoza, who had been released from County Jail just hours earlier. Police say Shaw was picked at random -- perhaps as part of a gang loyalty test.
Shaw, who spoke with tears running down his face, said repeatedly that he did not want to target Latinos.
The family's appearance drew rousing cheers in the council chambers.
Many police, political leaders and immigration rights groups oppose changing Special Order 40, arguing that it would make illegal immigrants wary of cooperating with law enforcement.
"We need information from the community to protect and police this city," said LAPD Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell. "The unintended consequence of local police enforcing immigration laws is that many [potential witnesses] in the most crime-ridden areas, where information is the hardest to come by, will be even more hesitant to come forward."
Instituted in 1979 by then-Chief Daryl F. Gates, Special Order 40 states that "officers shall not initiate police action with the objective of discovering the alien status of a person."
The order was meant to encourage immigrants -- be they eyewitnesses or victims -- to come forward.
But Special Order 40 has also been highly controversial and often misinterpreted. Many people, including some LAPD officers, believed the order completely prohibited asking about a person's immigration status, which became an issue several years ago when police began seeing an influx of Central American gang members who had previously been deported. Two anti-illegal-immigration groups have sued the LAPD to have the rule killed.
Although police officers cannot stop people for the sole purpose of asking about immigration status, they may ask about it as part of an arrest or booking process.
LAPD Deputy Chief Charlie Beck said the department has been aggressive in identifying gang members who are repeatedly arrested and deported, then reenter the United States to commit new crimes.
Police said Shaw's alleged killer was an 18th Street gang member. Espinoza spent nearly four months in Los Angeles County Jail for exhibiting a firearm and resisting arrest before his release March 1.
Virginia Kice, a spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said Espinoza was born in Mexico and came to the U.S. with his family at age 4.
Authorities attempt to identify illegal immigrants for possible detention when they are processed through the jail. But Sheriff's Department spokesman Steve Whitmore said that at the time of his previous arrest, Espinoza told Culver City police and sheriff's officials that he was born in Los Angeles.
Kice said her agency has no record of contact with Espinoza before his arrest in the Shaw case. Since then, ICE officials have researched his background and listed him as a potential candidate for deportation.
Kice said that determining the immigration status of suspects is difficult because there is no comprehensive database. Nonetheless, police and immigration officials have identified 20,000 illegal immigrants in Southern California jails between December 2006 and January 2008.
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