Dear Friend:

 

You probably saw that the state of Arizona passed a very tough anti-illegal immigration last week.  This new law will strengthen law enforcement’s ability to identify, arrest and detain those who are in this country illegally. 

 

I support this new law 100%.  Even before this law was passed, I was the only law enforcement official in this state enforcing all the laws that our federal and state legislatures put in place to combat illegal immigration and human smuggling.

 

Because I have taken the lead over the years by enforcing existing state and federal laws against illegal immigration, I have become the target of attack by radical, left-wing, open-borders extremists.

 

I’ve been sued, picketed, burned in effigy and even had the Reverend Al Sharpton come to Phoenix to march on my headquarters.  Some have even gone so far as to call for my assassination!

 

Their anger and vitriol is clearly misdirected at me. If they don't like the laws of this state or they support Obama's water-downed approach on illegal immigration, then they need to work with their legislators to change the law. The biggest problem they have in taking that approach is that the vast majority of citizens of the United States don't want the laws changed and they certainly don't support amnesty for those who break the law.

 

What they really want is a Sheriff who will look the other way, be silent and allow the charade to continue, while ignoring the laws of our land. That, I promise, will never happen.

 

But I desperately need your help. It's going to take a lot of resources to combat these false allegations — as well as the latest talk about a recall campaign against me. We anticipate the hardest campaign in Maricopa county history to remove me due to my unyielding stance on illegal immigration enforcement.

 

I cannot compete with the local and national media machines that distort my record and the job I’m doing to protect this country.  And, I don’t have the personal resources to defend myself from these vicious attacks.

 

That’s why I’m writing to you.  I have to go directly to the people for their support.  I need good people like you in this country to stand behind me and help me fight this fight.

 

Will you join me? I desperately need your help now. My election has been targeted as the frontline in the battle to end illegal immigration. We must win this battle.

 

Your financial support today is so critical. Please log on to http://www.reelectjoearpaio.com right now and make a much needed contribution. Any amount you can offer today is tremendously appreciated. I promise I will not let you down.

 

The fight starts now. Please help me. I pledge to you that I will never stop the fight. Thank you for your support.

 

Sincerely,

 

Sheriff Joe Arpaio

Maricopa County

 

P.S. In addition to making a contribution, please do me a favor and forward this email to your friends, family and other individuals who share our views. Together we can win this fight. Thank you.

 

Mexico acknowledges migrant abuse, pledges changes

 

By MARK STEVENSON, Associated Press Writer Mark Stevenson, Associated Press Writer – Wed Apr 28, 8:04 pm ET

MEXICO CITY – Amnesty International called the abuse of migrants in Mexico a major human rights crisis Wednesday, and accused some officials of turning a blind eye or even participating in the kidnapping, rape and murder of migrants.

The group's report comes at a sensitive time for Mexico, which is protesting the passage of a law in Arizona that criminalizes undocumented migrants.

The Interior Department acknowledged in a statement that the mainly Central American migrants who pass through Mexico on their way to the United States suffer abuses, but attributed the problem to criminal gangs branching out into kidnapping and extortion of migrants.

Rupert Knox, Amnesty's Mexico researcher, said in the report that the failure by authorities to tackle abuses against migrants has made their trip through Mexico one of the most dangerous in the world.

"Migrants in Mexico are facing a major human rights crisis leaving them with virtually no access to justice, fearing reprisals and deportation if they complain of abuses," Knox said.

Central American migrants are frequently pulled off trains, kidnapped en masse, held at gang hideouts and forced to call relatives in the U.S. to pay off the kidnappers. Such kidnappings affect thousands of migrants each year in Mexico, the report says.

Many are beaten, raped or killed in the process.

One of the main issues, Amnesty says, is that migrants fear they will be deported if they complain to Mexican authorities about abuses.

At present, Article 67 of Mexico's Population Law says, "Authorities, whether federal, state or municipal ... are required to demand that foreigners prove their legal presence in the country, before attending to any issues."

The Interior Department said the government has taken some steps to combat abuses and Mexico's legislature is working to repeal Article 67 "so that no one can deny or restrict foreigners' access to justice and human rights, whatever their migratory status."

The Amnesty report said one female migrant told researchers that Mexican federal police had forced her group off a train and stolen their belongings. Forced to walk, she said, she was subsequently attacked by a gang and raped.

The Interior Department said it shares Amnesty's concern, and called the report "a valuable contribution."

Mexico has long been offended by mistreatment of its own migrants in the United States.

The Arizona law — slated to take effect in late July or early August — makes it a state crime to be in the U.S. illegally and allows police to question anyone they suspect of being an illegal immigrant. Mexico has complained that the law would lend itself to racial profiling and discrimination.

 

Isn’t this the olla calling the kettle black?

 

How to Remove Your Head from Your Nether Regions:

 

People who haven't read the law and don't know anything about requirements that resident aliens already have to fulfill.
If you're a resident alien, you always have to have your 'papers'. It's federal law that you carry them.
Under this law, illegal immigration status is not a primary offense - they have to stop you for something else first. If you produce an AZ driver's license (or license from another state or some other official identification document), then you're presumed to be a citizen. If you produce the papers that the federal government makes you carry around, then you're presumed to be a legal resident alien. End of story - you get your speeding ticket and go on your way. Of course, if you're driving without a license, and without papers, you're in trouble. But then, you'd be in trouble anyway for driving without a license.
Link to the law, full text: http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/49leg/2r/bills/sb1070s.pdf

What would happen to me if I crossed into Mexico and got caught?

 

Mexican president slams Arizona immigration law

MEXICO CITY, April 26 (Reuters) - Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Monday slammed a tough new immigration law in the U.S. state of Arizona, which borders Mexico, saying it would breed hate and discrimination.

The law has raised fears that Hispanic immigrants could be racially profiled and reignited the hot-button political issue of immigration reform in the United States, which at times has touched off fierce criticism from some Latin American leaders.

"Criminalizing immigration, which is a social and economic phenomena, this way opens the door to intolerance, hate, and discrimination," Calderon told a meeting with Mexican immigrant groups.

"My government cannot and will not remain indifferent when these kinds of policies go against human rights," Calderon said, adding that he would bring up the new law when he meets with Obama next month during an official visit to Washington.

Arizona's Republican governor signed a bill into law last week requiring police to determine whether people are in the country legally and allowing them to detain suspected illegal immigrants.

The toughest immigration law in the United States, it triggered a chorus of criticism from leaders of the Democratic party, including President Barack Obama.

The majority of the 11 million people believed to be living illegally in the United States are immigrants from Mexico, which shares a lengthy border with its northern neighbor and has been pushing for years for comprehensive U.S. reform to improve immigrant rights.

Set to take effect 90 days after the current legislative session adjourns, the law requires state and local police with "reasonable suspicion" to determine if people are in the country illegally. It also makes it a crime to transport illegal immigrants and hire day laborers off the street.

 

Just consider it "local culture"

Monterrey hotel attacked in Mexico kidnappings

 

Reporting from Mexico City

In a bold predawn attack, gunmen stormed a hotel Wednesday in the heart of the northern city of Monterrey and kidnapped at least three people, officials said.

Mexican media said up to 50 hooded gunmen arrived in a convoy and burst into the downtown Holiday Inn, seizing guests and employees.

Law enforcement officials, offering only scant details by late afternoon, said it was not immediately clear whether a fourth person was seized or how many gunmen took part in the 3 a.m. attack. Authorities offered no motive for the kidnappings, but the attack bore the hallmarks of Mexico's drug gang violence.

Monterrey's mayor, Fernando Larrazabal, said police had trouble reaching the scene because the attackers commandeered cars and used them to block surrounding streets. Larrazabal told a radio interviewer that the kidnappers had disappeared in less than 20 minutes.

Authorities dismissed news reports that the kidnappers had seized another person from a hotel across the street. Initial news accounts here said seven people had been kidnapped.

Violence related to drug gangs has spiked in recent months in northeastern Mexico, including around Monterrey, a business hub that is Mexico's third-largest metropolitan area. Hit men have slain police officers and members of rival groups.

A shootout in Monterrey between gunmen and Mexican soldiers last month killed two university students outside their school, Monterrey Tech.

Much of the recent mayhem across the state of Nuevo Leon, of which Monterrey is the capital, and the nearby state of Tamaulipas stems from fighting between the Gulf cartel and former allies, known as the Zetas. That feud has drawn in other trafficking groups, spreading chaos along the U.S. border near the Gulf of Mexico.

The Holiday Inn, with 390 rooms, sits in a downtown zone with numerous high-rise hotels.

The website of the daily Reforma newspaper quoted an unidentified witness as saying the hotel erupted in shouts and the sound of people being beaten. It said gunmen fired when a captive tried to escape, but that it was not clear if the person was hit.

A security guard was reportedly pistol-whipped.

Calls to the hotel were not answered.

 

 

I must admit, I am sick to death of the number of car insurance commercials, in their variety of forms, that permeate TV, radio, and print ads.  Flo, Erin, Cavemen, Gecko, Unknown Black Dude for Allstate….. please…. Go away…. NOW!!!!

But.... I thought you couldn't carry a gun in Washington? And isn't robbing people illegal? This can't be happening...

'Harold & Kumar' star, Kal Penn, robbed at gunpoint in D.C.

by Chris Nashawaty

Categories: Movies, News, Television

As TMZ first reported, actor Kal Penn was robbed at gunpoint in Washington, D.C., early this morning, his rep confirmed. The 32-year-old star of the 2004 stoner comedy Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle and its 2008 sequel has been working in the capital for the Obama administration. The D.C. police confirmed a robbery at 1:20 A.M. on the 1500 block of S Street to EW. The actor was accosted by a gunman, who walked up to him and took a wallet and other belongings. Penn gave up his role on the TV show House last year to take the position of an associate director in the White House’s Office of Public Engagement. He is scheduled to star in a third Harold & Kumar film later this year.

 

Nah, this didn’t really happen…. Not in Obama’s Washington…..

 

 

 

Arizona to allow concealed weapons without permit

Governor Brewer signs legislation into law

Alia Beard Rau - Apr. 16, 2010 03:46 PM
The Arizona Republic

Starting later this summer, U.S. citizens 21 and older can begin carrying a concealed firearm without a permit in Arizona.

Gov. Jan Brewer signed Senate Bill 1108 into law Friday afternoon. It eliminates the requirement for a concealed-carry weapons permit, but does require gun owners to accurately answer if an officer asks them if they are carrying weapon concealed. It also allows officers to temporarily confiscate a weapon while they are talking to an individual, including during a traffic stop.

"I believe strongly in the individual rights and responsibilities of a free society, and as governor I have pledged a solemn and important oath to protect and defend the Constitution," Brewer said in a news release. "I believe this legislation not only protects the Second Amendment rights of Arizona citizens, but restores those rights as well."

The law goes into effect 90 days after the Legislature adjourns for this session, which could happen in the next couple of weeks.

Arizona joins Vermont and Alaska in not requiring such permits.

"If you want to carry concealed, and you have no criminal history, you are a good guy, you can do it," bill sponsor Sen. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, has said of his bill. "It's a freedom that poses no threat to the public."

National Rifle Association lobbyist Matt Dogali said the new state law would not violate any current federal requirements.

"There is no federal requirement for a permit or lack thereof," Dogali said.

The federal government oversees the background-check program required to purchase a weapon, which will still be required in Arizona in most cases.

Brewer last week did sign a separate law that exempts guns made and kept in Arizona from federal regulation, including background checks.

Arizona had 154,279 active permits as of April 4. Permit holders are spread across all ages, races and counties, but White males older than 30 in Maricopa and Pima counties hold the majority, according to the Arizona Department of Public Safety data.

The permits generated $1.8 million in revenue last fiscal year, according to DPS. The money is used to help cover costs for enforcing laws related to the Highway Patrol, operating the concealed-carry weapon-licensing program and impounding vehicles.

Arizona's permit process will remain in place, and many gun owners may still choose to get a permit. Permits would still be needed in order to carry a weapon into a restaurant or bar that serves alcohol. They would also be needed if an Arizonan wants to carry his or her gun concealed in most other states.

For those who do choose to get a permit, the education requirements do change under the new law. Classes are no longer required to be a set number of hours or include any hands-on use of the weapon. Those who don't get a permit would not be required to get any training or education.

Retired Mesa police officer Dan Furbee runs a business teaching permit and other gun safety classes. He said if most people choose not to get a permit, it will put several hundred Arizona firearms instructors out of business.

"It's going to hurt," he said.

But he said what really concerns him is that the new law will allow people who have had no education about Arizona's laws and no training on the shooting range to carry a concealed gun. The eight-hour class currently required to get a permit includes information on state law and gun safety, as well as requires students to be able to hit a target 14 out of 20 times. Furbee said his class at Mesa-based Ultimate Accessories costs $79, plus $60 for the five-year permit.

"I fully agree that we have a right to keep and bear arms," Furbee said. "But if you are not responsible enough to take a class and learn the laws, you are worse than part of the problem."

He said it's not uncommon for students to walk into his classroom and pull a new gun out of a box with no idea how to hold it and no understanding of the laws surrounding it.

"If you are going to carry a concealed weapon, you should have some kind of training and show that you are at least competent to know how the gun works and be able to hit a target," he said. "You owe the people around you a measure of responsibility."

This new law is the latest of several that have passed over the past year since Brewer took over the office from former Gov. Janet Napolitano, a Democrat.

Napolitano vetoed at least a dozen weapons bills that crossed her desk during her seven years in office, all of which would have loosened gun restrictions. In 2005, Napolitano rejected a bill that would have allowed patrons to carry loaded guns into bars and restaurants. In 2008, she also vetoed a bill that would have allowed people to have a hidden gun in vehicles without a concealed-carry permit.

In January 2009, Napolitano resigned to become U.S. Homeland Security secretary and Republican Secretary of State Brewer became governor.

During her first year in office, Brewer signed a bill allowing loaded guns in bars and restaurants, as well as another that prohibits property owners from banning guns from parking areas, so long as the weapons are kept locked in vehicles.

Of course he bowed. Kissing the Ass is Best Done Behind Closed Doors.

 

Police: Man Left Puppies Locked in Trunk

Updated: Monday, 12 Apr 2010, 6:31 PM MDT
Published : Monday, 12 Apr 2010, 3:56 PM MDT

PHOENIX - Phoenix Police have arrested a man after they say he left six puppies in the trunk of a car for over an hour without ventilation, food, or water -- and outside temperatures were in the 80s.

34-year-old Daniel Suarez Lujan is facing animal cruelty charges after police say he locked six puppies in a car while inside Desert Sky Mall on Sunday afternoon.

About 1 p.m., mall security was alerted to the car by passerbys who said they could hear an animal crying inside the trunk. A Phoenix Police officer who also worked security for the mall came to assist and heard yelping from the trunk.

The officer contacted the Humane Society and requested a lock-pick. At this point, Lujan walked out of the mall towards the car and deactivated the car alarm.

Police say Lujan opened the trunk to reveal six very small puppies in a metal cage. The puppies were not moving and were sprawled across the cage.

They were drenched in sweat, and there was no food or water in the cage. Lujan allegedly told the officer his cousin put them there.

Officers brought the puppies into the mall and gave them water. They had been inside the trunk for an hour. Outside temperatures were in the 80s.

AHS workers arrived at the mall to bring the puppies to their facility for treatment. They suffered heat stress and all are expected to survive.

Punishment: lock his ass in the trunk, one hour for each puppy.  Agreed?  I'd make such a good judge.

No, bad Idea.

Gun advocates divided over proposed bill on concealed weapons

 

PHOENIX -- Even among gun advocates, opinions are mixed over the bill that would allow Arizonans to carry concealed weapons without a permit or hands-on training.

At Shooter's World in  Phoenix, some, like Susette Tenney, voiced support for the bill that Brewer is expected to sign into law next week. She said gun owners should not have to buy a permit from the government to carry concealed weapons.

"I'm carrying a gun and it's going in my purse and I want the right to do that," she said.

Firearms instructor Dave Gushert said that training was important, and that the new bill might be a problem. In addition to safety, he said people carrying firearms should also know the laws about when it is legal to use a gun for self defense.

"Everybody thinks Arizona is the wild west and that you can just draw from the hip and go, and this is going to get a lot of people hurt or in trouble," Gushert said.

Nonetheless, advocates of the bill said they did not need the government to mandate training.

"I don't like the idea of anyone telling me I have to do anything," Tenney said.

If signed, the new bill will still require gun owners to get a permit to carry a concealed weapon inside of restaurants that serve alcohol and outside of Arizona.

Alaska and Vermont are the only other states that have similar laws.

 

Untrained idiots with no familiarity with the rules of escalation of force.  Gap toothed, mouth breathers now can hide their guns under their sweat stained, chicken grease covered t shirts.  I feel so much better.  I think with the injuries and discharging of guns that is soon to come, this with be a litigation cash cow for the state.

Oy.

Man shoots round into ceiling at el Mirage Walmart in front of people

 

EL MIRAGE – Police took a man into custody who reportedly accidentally fired one round into the ceiling of a Walmart in front of several people.

El Mirage officers responded to the store located at 12900 W. Thunderbird after receiving reports of shots fired. When police arrived at the store the manager was standing with the suspect.

During the investigation, witnesses told officers 30-year-old David Walter, of Surprise, entered the store with a semi-automatic pistol in a holster. He would reportedly holster the gun and un-holster it as he walked through the store. Witnesses say the suspect 'continually messed with' and was manipulating the gun.

Walter was standing at the electronics counter talking to the clerk when he reportedly pulled the gun out of the
holster, removed the magazine and put it back in. The clerk got scared and said she was afraid he was going to rob her and notified the store manager.

Walter again allegedly approached a checkout lane and stood near several customers and workers as he pulled the gun from his holster. As he pulled the gun out it magazine dislodged and fell to the floor.

Walter re-inserted the magazine into the pistol and manipulated it as if loading it when the gun discharged.

The suspect was arrested and booked on six counts of endangerment, disorderly conduct and discharging a weapon within the city limits.

Yes, I am all for the right to keep and bear arms, but just like children, some folks should not be allowed toown a gun.  Especially after a dumb ass stunt like this.

But, that's illegal.......

 

Triple Shooting at Phoenix Apartment Complex

Updated: Wednesday, 07 Apr 2010, 11:10 PM MDT
Published : Wednesday, 07 Apr 2010, 9:28 PM MDT

PHOENIX - Phoenix Police and Fire are at the scene of a gang-related triple shooting in an apartment complex at 12th St and Northern.

Police say an adult female has been shot in the abdomen, a 14-year-old boy has been shot in the arm, and a 15-year-old girl had a bullet graze her stomach.

The victims are expected to survive.

Officers are now searching for the shooters, who may be teenagers.

A witness described seeing the suspects drive by, guns blazing, in a gray van.

It's not clear if the victims were related and targeted by the shooters, or if the shooting was random.