Tancredo blames New Jersey killings on lax immigration policies Presidential candidate Tom Tancredo has urged the families of three young New Jersey murder victims to consider suing the city of Newark for negligence, saying its lax immigration policy is at least partially to blame for the execution-style slayings. The conservative Republican congressman from Colorado denounced the city's policy of not involving itself in immigration matters. 'I am encouraging the families of the victims to pursue the option of a lawsuit, in light of this culpability,' Tancredo said, criticizing Newark's status as a so-called 'sanctuary city' for immigrants. Newark, like many other cities including Los Angeles and Chicago, does not require police officers to check the immigration status of those they arrest or to report illegal immigrants to federal authorities. In the case of Jose Carranza, one of six suspects in the Newark killings, federal authorities were never told about the illegal Peruvian immigrant despite two prior brushes with the law. He was indicted twice this year on charges of child rape and aggravated assault but was released on bail both times, even though he was in the U.S. illegally. Newark Mayor Cory Booker, who has said involving city police in immigration matters would hurt the relationship between police and the immigrant community, repeated that contention today, citing the conclusions of a Clinton administration study on the issue. |
Last updated September 3, 2007