Rhymes With Right

February 19, 2009

What To Do?

Imagine that you are a member of law enforcement. You are at your church. In a pew some rows ahead of you, you recognize someone who you know has a warrant out for his arrest and a history of previous violent crimes. What do you do?

HereÂ’s what one local ICE agent did.

On a Sunday morning, in a church sanctuary near Conroe, an off-duty immigration agent tapped Jose Juan Hernandez on the shoulder and asked him to step outside.
A 31-year-old illegal immigrant from Mexico with three prior deportations, Hernandez quietly followed the agent and promptly was detained on suspicion of illegal re-entry after deportation, said Gregory Palmore, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman in Houston.
The case would be unremarkable, except for the setting. The fact that Hernandez was detained in church has sparked controversy locally. Hernandez was arrested Oct. 26, pleaded guilty to the re-entry charge this month and is scheduled for sentencing in April. He remains in federal detention in Conroe. HernandezÂ’s attorney, Rick Soliz, said he plans to file a complaint against the ICE agent in connection with the arrest.
Â“I wonder what the agent was thinking, if he was thinking at all,Â” Soliz said. Â“How do you decide to do that in the middle of a religious service?Â”

I guess I donÂ’t see the problem. We donÂ’t recognize the concept of sanctuary under our laws. Indeed, it would be quite an offense against the First Amendment if our laws did so. And given that the entire incident came off in an unobtrusive manner that didnÂ’t create a disturbance, IÂ’d argue that the agent ought to be praised, not condemned.

Posted by: Greg at 12:25 PM | Comments (32) | Add Comment
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