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From the Los Angeles Times

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Immigration: For the sake of the children

You, me — any parent — would risk it all to cross the border to secure a better future for our families.

by Susan Straight

October 30, 2011

In 1979, in my hometown of Riverside, my father came home one evening with news from the linen plant where he worked. A group of women whose job it was to wash, dry, iron and stack hospital linen had been taken away by immigration officials that day. They were undocumented workers from Mexico and would be deported.

I was 18 when I heard this, and I couldn't stop thinking about the likelihood that the deported women had left children behind. What if one had been forced to leave her children with a neighbor she didn't like or trust, just for that morning, because she had no one else? What if a 10-year-old had been left to watch younger siblings, and then the house grew dark, and still no one came home? What would happen to those children now?

That summer, I wrote 50 pages in a notebook imagining the life of a young Mexican woman who was taken in an immigration raid, leaving her California-born daughter to be raised by a foster mother. It was a scenario I knew, since my own mother had raised foster children for years, and I knew how, for many of them, "mother" was just a distant idea.

But I didn't really understand — nor could I finish the novel — until I had daughters of my own, and nearly lost one of them. Only then did I begin to understand the full complexity of the story and why mothers, and fathers, would take such huge risks for the possibility of helping their families.

In 1997, I journeyed to Oaxaca so that I could see the landscape and talk to people about making the decision to risk it all and travel illegally to a new country. My daughters, 7 and 5, were surrounded by Mexican women who cooed over their hair and eyes, and offered them sweets and tortillas. But the younger one soon became very ill with a bacterial infection she had apparently picked up before leaving California. A kind Oaxacan woman helped us find a doctor, and my husband carried our delirious, nearly unconscious child for blocks and blocks to the doctor's home. We then had to trust that the injection he gave her was the antibiotic she needed, and that he knew how to make her better.

I was horrified. This was my fault. I had wanted to write about a mother who would do anything to find the child she left behind in the United States, and I had ended up putting my own daughter at risk in the country my character would flee.

When the fever finally broke, I walked to the nearest church where a dozen women with shawls over their heads were praying in front of La Virgen de Soledad, patron saint of Oaxaca. I told them in Spanish what had happened, and they showed me how to offer my own life for that of my child, assuring me that God would hear my prayer. That's what they were doing, on their knees, in the dark, with photos of their children and offerings of candles and coins and flowers.

I joined them. And when I returned, her father said that he had offered the same prayer, but alone in the hotel room with no candles, only her breathing.

This is what I learned in Mexico: that parents will make any sacrifice for their children. Why do so many come across the border illegally? If you told me that one of my daughters would die young after stepping on a nail in a village without a doctor, or that my girls would have to leave school because they were needed to work and support the family, or that they would be in danger every day from drug cartels, I can promise you I would risk everything to give them a better life, especially if that life was available just across the border.

This fall, we are watching a different kind of migration, as undocumented immigrants flee Alabama in the wake of a draconian new law that involves schools, employers, landlords and police in a comprehensive immigration crackdown.

It's no wonder immigrant families are fleeing Alabama. But are they returning to their countries of origin? That's not likely — not as long as they can do better for their children in another state.

Alabama farmers and other employers are having difficulty filling jobs, and when they do, the new workers aren't as willing to work long hours doing difficult labor.

Living only 100 miles from the Mexican border, I've seen wave after wave of immigration and a variety of laws intended to control it. I saw lives changed by Reagan's amnesty in the 1980s and by Clinton's Operation Gatekeeper in the 1990s. And through all the policy shifts, the migration has continued. We can't simply open the borders, of course. But we need to acknowledge the labor issues, and family realities, that have produced the situation and develop policy that acknowledges those complexities.

A teacher friend told me recently about her second-grade student whose father was killed in drug violence. An uncle helped the boy and his mother get to California, but then the uncle was killed. The boy has nightmares and never says a word in class, and his mother is desperate. But will she return to Mexico? Would you?

Susan Straight's novel "Highwire Moon" explores the lives of a mother and daughter separated by the mother's deportation. Her most recent book is "Take One Candle Light a Room."

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-straight-immigration-20111030,0,7981698,print.story

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From Google News

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Ontario, Canada

Community policing pitches Neighbourhood Watch program

Neighbours on the lookout for suspicious behavior to reduce incidents of mischief, theft and property crime in the community is the motive behind renewed efforts to form a Neighbourhood Watch program in Kenora.

Kenora Community Policing Committee chairman Bill Richards and OPP Const. Dave Cain presented the plan at a sparsely attended public meeting at the Kenora Recreation Centre's Rotary Room, Tuesday evening.

"It's all about teaching the community to take care of our own neighbourhoods," Cain explained.

Richards noted although the program hasn't been active in Kenora for several decades, increasing incidents of neighbourhoods being targeted for mischief, minor theft, graffiti and tagging have made the initiative a priority for the committee.

"Hopefully, we'll get the program off the ground over the next year or less," Richards said.

In addition to the power point presentation on how Neighbourhood Watch is a community driven initiative involving neighbours looking out for neighbours, information brochures and the distinctive blue and white Neighbourhood Watch signs and window stickers were available for homeowners to identify their support for the program.

"This is our 'tag' and... the message is we're not going to take it anymore," Richards said.

The committee is looking for residents to come forward to participate in the program as neighbourhood volunteers, zone contacts and area coordinators in a call for community action to clean up problem areas in town.

"You don't have to be a super hero, just get the signs up and when you see something happening, make the call," Cain advised. "Get involved in your community and get to know your neighbours."

For more information on the Neighbourhood Watch program contact Const. Dave Cain at Kenora detachment 548-5534.

http://www.lotwenterprise.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3350777

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New York

Cops need alternative to Tasers

The New York Civil Liberties Union recently issued a 40-page report, "Taking Tasers Seriously: The Need for Better Regulation of Stun Guns in New York." Unfortunately, the report failed to mention how community policing and police volunteers might help decrease the need to resort to Tasers.

In some Capital Region communities and elsewhere in New York, there are volunteer auxiliary police. Since long before the introduction of the community policing strategy, citizens have had the opportunity of volunteering to assist regular police in making their communities a safer place to live. Use of such volunteer police in New York City predates U.S. involvement in World War I.

The NYCLU report analyzed 851 Taser incident reports from eight police departments, including Albany and Guilderland. The report also looked at 10 departments' policies and guidelines for using the weapons, which deliver up to 50,000 volts of electricity.

A federal appeals court in California in 1995 cited the testimony of a law enforcement officer who compared a Taser shock to "being hit on the back with a four-by-four by Arnold Schwarzenegger." Taser weapons have contributed to the deaths of more than a dozen New Yorkers in recent years.

The NYCLU analysis found that "nearly 60 percent of reported Taser incidents did not meet expert recommended criteria for justifying Taser use. ... Forty percent of the Taser incidents analyzed involved at-risk subjects, such as children, the elderly, the visibly infirm and individuals who are seriously intoxicated or mentally ill."

Consequently, the NYCLU recommends that New York police agencies comply with nationally recognized expert guidelines, such as those created by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Police Executive Research Forum, for their training programs. The state also should recognize the urgent need to undertake actions to achieve and coordinate the universal adoption of these expert guidelines.

Although the report stated that "people of color are overwhelmingly represented in Taser incidents," the health and welfare of all individuals are in jeopardy until the recommendations contained in the report are followed.

Here's where auxiliary police offices can help.

These unpaid, uniformed volunteers are trained to perform many of the noncriminal-related functions of police officers. If carefully selected and trained according to local police department standards and policies, they can do much to prevent incidents of domestic abuse, public intoxication, gang violence and other types of disorder. Most importantly, they can reduce to the need for regular police intervention and their use of force.

Local police agencies could take a giant stride toward fulfilling our societal aspirations by not only supporting the NYCLU's recommendations regarding the use of Taser weapons, but also by making the profound and difficult changes needed for the true implementation of the "community policing" initiative.

Community policing is aimed at building a culture within the police department and the community it serves, based on the values of interaction and respect. It is a strategy that combines community input, scientific crime analysis and cooperative problem solving.

The use of trained and qualified auxiliary police officers represents a primary example of such cooperative problem-solving and is, perhaps, the highest form of community policing and citizen involvement in public safety.

Martin A. Greenberg is director of education and research for the New York State Association of Auxiliary Police, His email address is mgreenberg955@gmail.com.

http://www.timesunion.com/opinion/article/Cops-need-alternative-to-Tasers-2242280.php

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From the Department of Justice

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Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the Operation Pill Nation II Announcement

Tampa, Fla. ~ Friday, October 28, 2011

Today marks an important step forward in our nation's ongoing fight against one of the greatest public safety and public health epidemics of our time: prescription drug abuse. Along with three key leaders in this fight – DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida Robert O'Neill, and Florida's Attorney General Pamela Bondi – and with all of the federal, state, and local partners standing behind us – I am here to announce the results of Operation Pill Nation II : the U.S. government's latest effort to target every aspect of the prescription drug supply chain, including the operators of rogue pain clinics, and unethical physicians and pharmacists.

This morning, law enforcement efforts led by the DEA and the U.S. Attorney's Office here in Tampa have resulted in the arrests of 22 individuals – including 5 doctors and 2 pharmacists. This work builds on the success of the first Operation Pill Nation , which was launched last year to target rogue pain clinics in South Florida. As of today, these two operations have led to 118 arrests, the surrender of more than 80 DEA registrations, and the seizure of more than $19 million in assets; and they have helped to bring about the closure of at least 40 Florida pain clinics.

Our targeted, aggressive enforcement actions are sending a clear message that – here in Florida, which has long been the nation's epicenter for the illegal distribution of prescription drugs – the days of easily acquiring these drugs from corrupt doctors and pharmacists are coming to an end.

And this progress hasn't come a moment too soon.

Today, prescription drug abuse is the fastest-growing drug problem in the county – and contributes to nearly 40,000 deaths and almost $200 billion in health-care costs annually. It's estimated that, nationwide, approximately 7 million people regularly use prescription drugs for non-medical purposes; and that, in the past year alone, one in seven teens abused prescription drugs to get high.

Over the last decade, fatal poisonings involving drugs like oxycodone and methadone have more than tripled. And prescription drugs now cause more overdose deaths than "street drugs" such as cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine.

Here in Florida, the problem has reached crisis proportions. Between 2005 and 2010, the number of oxycodone-related deaths in this state increased by 345 percent. That's right, 345 percent. And, last year, of the estimated 53 million oxycodone doses sold to medical practitioners in the United States, more than 85 percent were purchased here in Florida.

The proliferation of “pill mills” we've seen across Florida in recent years has had a devastating impact far beyond this state. And prosecuting these operations – wherever they spread – has become a Department priority. In addition to the Pill Nation operations, just last month, the United States Attorney in Connecticut announced the arrests of 20 people – including three TSA agents and a Florida Highway Patrol Officer – for channeling tens of thousands of oxycodone pills from Florida to Connecticut.

As this – and our latest operations – show, we are fighting back. And, despite the size and scope of the problem before us, I believe that there is good cause for optimism.

When it comes to reducing prescription drug abuse, research has proven that targeted law enforcement efforts work. In addition to our strong focus on enforcement, the Justice Department also has taken steps to advance education, treatment, and policy solutions. And, all across the country, this work is making a difference.

By providing law enforcement with the tools, support, and information-sharing capabilities necessary to investigate drug sources, we've become more effective than ever at disrupting the trafficking of prescription drugs. One promising approach to choking off the supply chain is the deployment of DEA Tactical Diversion Squads, which maximize federal, state, and local law enforcement resources. These squads have taken our efforts to shut down “pill mill” pain clinics, prescription forgery rings, and illegal online pharmacies to a new level. They're currently operating in 40 cities, including Tampa, Miami, and – I'm pleased to announce – Orlando.

In addition to advancing investigations and prosecutions, we're also focused on prevention. Through outreach efforts like the DEA's Red Ribbon campaign, and the development of new educational programs, we're working to raise awareness about the signs and dangers of prescription drug abuse. We're also helping law enforcement officers connect directly with doctors – and enabling physicians to utilize the information available from state Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs, which are among our most effective tools in preventing patients from “doctor shopping.”

But physicians aren't the only supply source. Recent surveys show that more than half of those who admit to abusing prescription painkillers said they got drugs "from a friend or relative for free"– and not from their doctor. Without question – getting old, unused, or expired drugs out of our medicine cabinets is critical. That's why, beginning last September, the DEA has sponsored two Prescription Drug Take Back Events. During the last two “Take Backs,” more than 300 tons of prescription drugs were collected nationwide. And our next one will be held tomorrow.

At more than 5,000 collection sites across the country – including one at Tampa's Museum of Science and Industry – people will be able to drop off prescription drugs to be disposed of safely, at no cost and with no questions asked. And I urge all of you to help us spread the word.

In addition to effective drug prevention and treatment programs, we must also support regulatory and policy improvements – just like the ones we've seen here in Florida.

Thanks to the leadership and advocacy efforts of many of the people in this room, as of September 1 st , Florida law now prohibits doctors and clinics from dispensing pain medicine on-site – and requires patients to go to a pharmacy to fill their prescriptions. Regulatory changes have also allowed doctors to access more up-to-date information on this state's Prescription Drug Monitoring Program.

As a result of these improvements, in recent weeks, we've seen a dramatic decline in oxycodone prescriptions and sales. However, DEA has also seen a drastic spike in the number of new pharmacy applications, often from those totally unqualified to own and operate them. These applications are being reviewed carefully – and those that, in the past, would have become little more than “pill mills” are being denied.

The state of Florida – once the leading source of America's prescription drug problem – is now becoming part of the solution. And, together, we're proving that changes in state laws, accompanied by robust enforcement, can achieve powerful results – and help to alter dangerous behaviors.

As progress continues to be made here in Florida – and across the country – I want to assure you that the Justice Department's commitment to preventing and combating prescription drug abuse will continue. And, for as long as they're needed, aggressive takedown operations like Pill Nation I and II will be an integral part of our work. I want to thank everyone involved in these operations for their outstanding contributions, and for their ongoing efforts in addressing – and overcoming – the problem of prescription drug abuse.

http://www.justice.gov/iso/opa/ag/speeches/2011/ag-speech-111028.html

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