New Jersey's Tragedy Sets an Example for the Rest of the Nation

New Policy Requiring Checks of Immigration Status Will Save Lives

(Washington, D.C. - August 23, 2007 )

In the aftermath of an avoidable tragedy, in which three college students were brutally murdered and another critically wounded by two suspects who were in the country illegally, the state of New Jersey has announced that all police officers will be required to notify federal officials when they arrest an illegal alien for an indictable offense. One of the suspects in this case, Jose Carranza, an illegal alien from Peru, had other serious felony charges pending against him, yet he had been released on bond because police in New Jersey were barred from investigating his immigration status. Had that information been known, Carranza would likely not have been released from custody and three senseless murders would have been averted.

The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) applauds Attorney General Anne Milgram's new directive requiring all law enforcement agencies in New Jersey to notify federal immigration authorities when they arrest someone for an indictable offense who is suspected of being in the country illegally. FAIR is calling on all states to adopt similar, if not stronger, policies in order to prevent similar tragedies from occurring elsewhere.

"Sadly, the change in policy in New Jersey comes too late for the three students who were gunned down in Newark. The only positive outcome that can result from this tragedy is that other states will abolish policies that prevent police from checking immigration status of criminal aliens, resulting in their release back onto the streets where they can claim other innocent victims," said Dan Stein, president of FAIR.

The Newark murders are the most graphic examples of the high price ordinary citizens pay for misguided, politically motivated policies that shield illegal aliens from federal immigration authorities. Similar policies in place all across the country have allowed illegal aliens who have had run-ins with law to be released back into the community, where they subsequently commit other crimes.

"Actual, or de facto, sanctuary policies are placing the safety of the American public at risk," Stein said. "After the tragedy in Newark, no local official will ever be able to point the finger of blame at anyone else when local sanctuary policies result in the killing or maiming of innocent members of the community. From here on, the American people will hold officials who institute illegal alien sanctuary policies accountable for the preventable crimes those policies make possible."

FAIR has long opposed local sanctuary policies that prevent local police from seeking or sharing information about a suspect's immigration status and thus shield illegal aliens from federal immigration officers. "The primary responsibility of local government officials and local police is to protect the safety of law-abiding citizens, not to make illegal aliens feel welcome. Unfortunately, too many politicians have given in to pressure from the advocates for illegal aliens, and Terrance Aeriel, Dashon Harvey and Iofeme Hightower have paid for it with their lives," Stein concluded.