The unidentified Pinal County deputy was wounded in the desert after coming across 5 suspected illegal immigrants and being shot by one with an AK-47. The shooting comes amid a national debate over Arizona’s tough new immigration law that allows police to demand proof of residency. Arizona lawmakers say the law is necessary since the federal government has failed to enforce border security with Mexico, allowing more than 450,000 illegal immigrants to cross over into the state. But opponents say it’s merely legal permission for racial profiling.
The original law allowed police to stop ANYONE they suspected of being an illegal immigrant for ANY reason, which basically meant any Hispanic in the region was an instant and constant target. But on Friday, the Arizona State Legislature amended the law, permitting police to only detain a suspect following some other infraction, such as a traffic violation. Gov. Jan Brewer immediately signed the bill into law, hoping to ease concerns about racial profiling and prevent her state from a series of planned boycotts. “These changes specifically answer legal questions raised by some who expressed fears that the original law would somehow allow or lead to racial profiling,” Brewer said in a statement after the signing. “These new amendments make it crystal clear and undeniable that racial profiling is illegal and will not be tolerated in Arizona.” But some opponents were still not convinced.
“It doesn’t deter anything,” said Dan Pochoda, legal director of the Arizona ACLU. “It’s not a serious hurdle.” Pochoda said that law enforcement officers, who are under strong pressure to find and remove illegal immigrants, could still identify people by race and then look for a minor infraction as an excuse to investigate them.
Tucson, AZ police officer Martin Escobar is also unconvinced, and has gone so far as to file a lawsuit against his own state for a law he assuredly calls “profiling.” He has patrolled Arizona for 50 years and says the law makes it far too easy for police to misuse their power, since it extends their reach beyond just being police officers, but into immigration officers. His job is now on the line for speaking out.
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During the past several days I've witnessed many people becoming overtly upset regarding this law. However, I've also watched on television several illegal immigrants speaking against the law while brazenly admitting they are here illegally. So where do we draw the line? We can't move all of Mexico to the United States. If they want to immigrate here they should stand in line and do so legally like every other immigrant to this country has always done. It just sickens me!