July 13, 2005

Lock Up The Dark Skinned

by Sean Sirrine

First, before I say anything else, I'd like to give a big shout-out to Chris Geidner. He is a continuing part of this forum and a big law geek like myself at the aptly named Law Dork. Chris has given me the awesome opportunity to become a permanent member of this forum, and for that, he will always be here. I hope to channel Chris like Luke Skywalker channeled Obi Wan in cases of dire need. Maybe some of the lessons that Chris learned from law school can be passed on to the next wave. If not, maybe I'll get a chance to buy him a beer someday.

Anyway, let us return to the morbidly arousing spectacle of law in this country.

Today I'd like to discuss an issue that I believe should have all of us up in arms. Talk Left is reporting that:

Jorge Mora Ramirez was making a cell phone call from his car, which he’d stopped on the side of a road. That lawful activity shouldn’t have subjected Ramirez to a police encounter, but a local cop interrogated Ramirez and got him to admit that he didn’t enter the country through proper channels. The cop tried to get INS to take Ramirez into custody, but INS doesn’t have the resources to waste on undocumented immigrants who pose no threat to public safety. The clever cop then decided that Ramirez was trespassing, simply by entering the cop’s town.

Why is this important? Maybe this phrase will spark something in your memory:

"Ihren papieren, bitte."

In case you weren't familiar, that is a nice German saying that the Nazis had for "give me your papers please".

I know what you are thinking, "another Nazi post that has no relation to the Nazis". Well, I beg to differ, what is stopping these police from demanding documentation from anyone at anytime? If you can be "trespassing" for being in a town, then any American can be forced to provide their papers. The real question is whether those forced to show their papers will ever be white.

Here's some more from Talk Left:

Noting that if found guilty, Ramirez would receive no jail time and only a $1,000 fine, the judge asked the prosecutor, "How is national security or even local security enhanced by giving someone a citation?"

In his questions to the prosecutor about how such applications of the law would work, Runyon asked if foreign visitors could be detained if they left their passport at their hotel. Morse said foreigners would be expected to have the documents.

Aha! Here it is, in black and white. "Foreigners" will be expected to have their papers, whew, I guess us Americans have nothing to worry about.

Wait, what if the guy looks foreign, but claims to be an American. Lock him up, he should have had his papers! He should know better than to travel around this country without proper documentation!

Maybe Chief W. Garrett Chamberlain figures he can make the state free of any dark-skinned people. What a sick joke from a state with the slogan "Live Free or Die".

July 13, 2005 06:16 PM | TrackBack
Comments

I still beg to differ. The story is about a misguided cop who knew that it was illegal for Ramirez to be in the country, but seemed to have no concept of where his duties/powers ended and where the discretion of the INS and Ramirez's rights began.

If you're just going to post TalkLeft articles and then equate misuse of trespass laws with being a Nazi, I suggest that you leave the hyperbole to TalkLeft and stop giving Chris Geidner reason to roll in his proverbial grave.

Posted by: T-Money at July 20, 2005 01:33 AM
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