The Dallas Morning News calls Alicia Rodriguez a "Native" --- what does this mean.? Yes I know the word is used to describe a "native Texan" or "native from Arlington" ---- or "Native American"
Either way, sounds like the paper was making her out to be a native of something....
Alicia Rodriguez was almost deported to Mexico - because Arlington police did not make enough of an effort to check her identity. They assumed she was someone else; and worst of all, told her sister they were going to deport Ms. Rodriguez.
The Arlington Police did not believe her when she told them she was a U.S. citizen because - as they stated the other Alicia Rodriguez falsely claimed to be an American citizen... This is absolutely illogical... why would one person be arrested because another lied?
This was an abominable act by the Arlington Police. It might have been just a mistake.... if the Arlington Police say it was a mistake, then they are showing they clearly lack intelligence and logic.
I hope they don't start deporting the American born children of undocumented immigrants... Its a possibility now that they let us know they are capable of such an error.
-----
Native was threatened with deportation
Arlington: Woman jailed for unpaid tickets mistaken for illegal immigrant
Dallas Morning News
12:00 AM CDT on Saturday, September 1, 2007
From Wire Reports
ARLINGTON – Authorities threatened a Texas native with deportation after unpaid tickets landed her in jail and officers mistook her for an illegal immigrant with the same name and birthday.
...Arlington police acknowledged officers should have checked her fingerprints after a criminal history check revealed that an Alicia Rodriguez, a Mexican citizen with several aliases and the same birthday as the jailed woman, had been deported.
The women were about the same height, but the Texas-born mother of three weighs 25 pounds more. Still, police thought the women could be the same, because the illegal immigrant's information was from 1999.
"It was our mistake, and we apologize," Arlington police spokeswoman Christy Gilfour said.
Ms. Rodriguez said police didn't do enough to verify her identity and refused to believe her assertions she is a U.S. citizen.
"I don't think it was an honest mistake," she said. "There were many steps they missed and didn't follow up on."
An Arlington officer pulled Ms. Rodriguez over Sunday after checking her license plates and discovering two warrants in nearby Dalworthington Gardens. One warrant was issued because she was cited last year for driving without insurance and the other because she failed to show up in court on that charge, she said.
After booking her, Arlington police contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to check her citizenship status, which Ms. Gilfour said is routine.
Ms. Rodriguez said she was questioned over the telephone by an immigration official who warned her she could be charged with perjury for lying about her birthplace and other details. She was later told that authorities didn't believe she was who she claimed to be – but no one said they thought she was an illegal immigrant.
"I thought somebody had committed a scary crime and had stolen my identity," she said.
Ms. Rodriguez said she told the officers to check her fingerprints as well as her voter registration card and voting history. She spent the night in jail.
Ms. Rodriguez's sister, Deborah Evans, said she delivered a birth certificate and Social Security card Monday morning, first to Arlington and then to the Dalworthington Gardens station after her sister was transferred there. But Ms. Evans said officers at both stations told her repeatedly that her sister was going to be deported.
When Ms. Rodriguez's information was verified, ICE dropped the hold placed on her and she was released Monday, agency spokesman Carl Rusnok said. She paid her ticket fines earlier in the day.
Mr. Rusnok said the agency acted appropriately, especially since the other Alicia Rodriguez, who had been deported three times, also had claimed to be an American citizen.
For complete article: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-mistaken_01met.ART.West.Edition1.4274132.html
cartoon: http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscartoons/cartoonists/for/lowres/forn68l.jpg
No comments:
Post a Comment