A Reno McDonald's franchisee has been fined $1 million for giving illegal aliens false Social Security numbers so they could be hired.
Mack Associates filed guilty pleas to one count of conspiracy to encourage and induce an alien's unlawful residence in the United States and one count of aiding and abetting an alien to remain in the United States. Both are felony offenses.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials last week said illegal alien deportations from Washington, Oregon and Alaska have increased almost 40 percent over last year, according to the Associated Press. 7,345 illegal aliens were deported during the first nine months of the fiscal year, up from 5,256 for the same period last year. ICE officials said the increase is partially due to an expansion of the Criminal Alien Program, which enables federal, state and local officials to work together to identify illegal aliens with criminal records and deport them.
Nineteen former Pilgrim's Pride workers have pleaded guilty to misusing Social Security numbers in order to gain employment at a Texas plant. These convictions stem from the April ICE raids of Pilgrim's Pride facilities in five states. These individuals, all illegal aliens of Latin American origin, have been handed over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for possible deportation. The April ICE raids were the culmination of a year-long investigation by ICE into the fraudulent use of Social Security numbers.
Missouri Governor Matt Blunt signed into law today legislation that will make it harder for illegal aliens living in the state to receive benefits and harder to find jobs.
The new legislations requires all public employers to use the E-Verify system to verify the legality of a potential employee and requires and individual to prove their citizenship status before receiving state benefits such as food stamps and housing. The bill also punishes those localities that adopt policies to not cooperate with federal immigration authorities.
The May 12 enforcement action at the Postville, Iowa meatpacking plant yielded 389 rank-and-file arrests, but no managerial arrests until yesterday when the first supervisors were taken in custody. The New York Times reports two supervisors were charged with securing false documents for illegal aliens and a warrant was issued for the arrest of a third person, who is described as a plant manager. 270 of the illegal aliens arrested were sent to federal prison on fraudulent document charges.
The Associated Press reports that Prince William County Board Chairman Corey Stewart links the decline in certain types of crime last year to the County's efforts to reduce illegal immigration. The Virginia County released a study in late June that says homicides dropped by 44 percent from 2006 to 2007. Also, during the same time period, the number of rapes fell 33 percent, robberies declined 23 percent, and aggravated assaults dropped by 18 percent.
