roo_ster
July 7, 2005, 07:51 AM
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/3254235
July 6, 2005, 7:40AM
Officers told not to photograph illegal day workers
By ANNE MARIE KILDAY
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
The Houston Police Department has instructed officers not to photograph illegal immigrants seeking day jobs, after an incident last month prompted an outcry from an immigrant rights group.
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Houston police Capt. Juan Trevino made the pledge to 400 people who attended a meeting Tuesday night organized by The Metropolitan Organization, an interfaith grass-roots political action group.
Trevino said that "an isolated handful of officers" took immigrants' photographs after a business owner on North Shepherd recently complained that they "were walking on private property."
Addressing the TMO gathering in Spanish and English, Trevino said that the Houston police department will work with the organization to encourage immigrant workers to seek work at the east side day labor center.
"We have initiated a policy where, at this time, we are instructing all officers that they cannot photograph any of the day laborers that are currently out in the field," Trevino said.
After the meeting at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Trevino said the photographs of immigrants involved "an isolated handful of officers — it was maybe only one or two."
"But currently the department has given directions down through the captains to instruct all officers to cease that practice until our legal services investigation ... until that matter has been clarified," Trevino said.
The police officers who took the photographs were trying to persuade the immigrants not to stand on private property while waiting for day jobs, Trevino said.
"It really was an attempt to remind them the next day that 'Hey, you were here because here's the picture.' That was just one officer's way of doing things," Trevino said.
Broderick Bagert, an organizer for the TMO, said the community organization welcomed Trevino's comments.
"It had been an issue of real concern because people from the churches in the East End have worked for more than a year and half to win funding for the worker-development center in the East End," Bagert said. "We've been working to staff that, to organize it, and we've really invested in that strategy to deal with day laborers. The second work site has just gotten started in the last few months."
Even though the incident occurred on Houston's north side, Bagert said, there was concern "that the police were going to be intimidating workers. It was seen as a real step back. So we were very concerned about it," Bagert said.
anne.kilday@chron.com
So, Houston cops can't even collect evidence of tresspassing if they think the tresspasser is an illegal alien. Nice.
Hey, where is my special immunity to arrest/prosecution?
Mow your own d*mn lawn.
July 6, 2005, 7:40AM
Officers told not to photograph illegal day workers
By ANNE MARIE KILDAY
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
The Houston Police Department has instructed officers not to photograph illegal immigrants seeking day jobs, after an incident last month prompted an outcry from an immigrant rights group.
ADVERTISEMENT
Houston police Capt. Juan Trevino made the pledge to 400 people who attended a meeting Tuesday night organized by The Metropolitan Organization, an interfaith grass-roots political action group.
Trevino said that "an isolated handful of officers" took immigrants' photographs after a business owner on North Shepherd recently complained that they "were walking on private property."
Addressing the TMO gathering in Spanish and English, Trevino said that the Houston police department will work with the organization to encourage immigrant workers to seek work at the east side day labor center.
"We have initiated a policy where, at this time, we are instructing all officers that they cannot photograph any of the day laborers that are currently out in the field," Trevino said.
After the meeting at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Trevino said the photographs of immigrants involved "an isolated handful of officers — it was maybe only one or two."
"But currently the department has given directions down through the captains to instruct all officers to cease that practice until our legal services investigation ... until that matter has been clarified," Trevino said.
The police officers who took the photographs were trying to persuade the immigrants not to stand on private property while waiting for day jobs, Trevino said.
"It really was an attempt to remind them the next day that 'Hey, you were here because here's the picture.' That was just one officer's way of doing things," Trevino said.
Broderick Bagert, an organizer for the TMO, said the community organization welcomed Trevino's comments.
"It had been an issue of real concern because people from the churches in the East End have worked for more than a year and half to win funding for the worker-development center in the East End," Bagert said. "We've been working to staff that, to organize it, and we've really invested in that strategy to deal with day laborers. The second work site has just gotten started in the last few months."
Even though the incident occurred on Houston's north side, Bagert said, there was concern "that the police were going to be intimidating workers. It was seen as a real step back. So we were very concerned about it," Bagert said.
anne.kilday@chron.com
So, Houston cops can't even collect evidence of tresspassing if they think the tresspasser is an illegal alien. Nice.
Hey, where is my special immunity to arrest/prosecution?
Mow your own d*mn lawn.
