Orange Council Backs Immigration Law

A divided City Council voted Tuesday to aggressively take a front-line role under a new federal law that allows local police to be “deputized” as immigration officers--a move some critics fear could chill relations between police and minorities.

The council voted 4 to 1 to draft a resolution supporting the law signed by President Bill Clinton in September and to formally ask federal agencies to begin a pilot program that would train local police officers to question and arrest suspected illegal immigrants.

Councilman Mark Murphy, the chief backer of the proposal, told fellow council members it was their obligation to take a stand against illegal immigration.

“The only way this thing is going to move forward is for us to step up and take action,” said Murphy, who met with resistance from council members who wanted to move more slowly. “I believe that’s the way we’re going to get this done.”

The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act of 1996 allows local police agencies to act as immigration agents once they are trained in immigration laws and procedures. Such power previously was restricted to officers of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Police Chief John R. Robertson said he has serious reservations about the law. While he agrees that it could help cope with illegals who commit crimes, he worries that it could also destroy the trust police have built with minority communities over the past few years.

“We would not want to implement any program that would damage community policing,” he said. “I would be adamantly opposed to running out and doing neighborhood sweeps. . . . Our intent is not to arrest people [solely] for being here illegally.”

Latino rights leaders said they are uncomfortable with a proposal that could give law enforcement so much authority.

“These guys are always pushing the envelope,” said Arturo Montez of the League of United Latin American Citizens.

Robertson told council members that details of the law will not be available for six months to a year. But he cautioned that the training required at the city’s expense might make the program too costly to pursue.

The law includes no procedures specifying how local police would be empowered to act as immigration agents.

“The only thing known about this training is that it will be at the expense of the” local agency, Robertson said.

Murphy introduced the proposal in the wake of several high-profile gang shootings, incidents which some believe can be traced to illegal immigrants.

Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach), who helped author the sweeping federal law that cracks down on illegal immigrants on several fronts, has been coaxing council members to pursue this option, Murphy said.

Council members agreed that their actions are contingent on an analysis showing how much this new role could cost the city. They also agreed to urge Cox to set up a community forum as quickly as possible to explain more fully this provision of the law.

Councilman Michael Alvarez voted against the measure, saying that he wanted more information about the impact of the law.