Judge Restarts Program to Screen for Illegal Immigrants in Court

An Orange County Superior Court judge restarted a controversial program Monday that allows a federal agent in his courtroom to help identify illegal immigrants accused of committing crimes.

As part of the pilot program, an Immigration and Naturalization Service agent was placed in the courtroom of Judge David O. Carter, who supervises the county’s criminal courts.

The program was instituted in 1989 and won national acclaim, but was later suspended amid criticism from human rights activists.

Agents “are back and they are interviewing,” Carter said Monday. “I’m very optimistic.”

Virginia Kice, a spokeswoman for the INS office in Laguna Niguel, said the program is unique in the Western United States and results from a meeting last week between Carter and officials from her agency and the Justice Department.

Kice said the INS will use the court screening process in concert with a similar program begun July 24 in the Orange County Jail.

Agents hope to identify criminal illegal immigrants going through the judicial system and potentially deport convicted felons after they serve their sentences, Kice said.

“The identity of criminal aliens is one of the INS’ top priorities,” Kice said. “We are trying to identify choke points in the system, avenues where these people travel so we can position ourselves to intercept them.”

Statistics from 1989 showed that 35%--834 of the 2,366 offenders screened in Carter’s court--were identified as illegal immigrants.

When the program began it was criticized for using state funds to assist a federal agency. Some Latino rights activists also expressed concerns that people of color would be picked on, although Carter insists that every defendant in his courtroom will be screened, regardless of race or ethnic origin.

“I applaud the plan that everyone be subjected to this, not just Latino-looking people,” said Amin David of Anaheim, president of Los Amigos of Orange County, a Latino activist group. “I have a lot of respect for Judge Carter. I know him well. He is a very fair man.”

But David was concerned whether the constitutional rights of suspected criminals could be violated by INS agents questioning them without attorneys present.

Judge Ted Millard, the presiding judge in Orange County Superior Court, said officials of the court will do everything possible to see that the program is administered “in a nondiscriminatory level.”

“My understanding is that, before, this program was fairly successful. We hope it will be successful now,” Millard said.

Kice said INS agents will spend this week assessing the volume of their work and will inaugurate the program officially sometime next week.