Worried that federal immigration authorities could exploit a controversial statewide gang database, California’s outgoing Attorney General Kamala D. Harris wants lawmakers to give the state Department of Justice full control over the database.
Author Archives: YVETTE CABRERA
Posted inCountywide, Health & Wellness, Investigative, Top Stories
Immigrant Advocates Fighting to Keep State Gang Database Away From Trump
Advocates want state Attorney General Kamala Harris to block federal access to the controversial CalGang database out of fears that the Trump administration will use it to deport unauthorized immigrants who’ve been erroneously labeled as gang members.
Posted inCountywide, Top Stories
Troubled Pasts Force Hard Choices for Some Undocumented Immigrants
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was designed to give undocumented immigrants who arrived as children a chance to go to college and get work. But some who’ve had troubles at school or with law enforcement see it as a trap.
Posted inCountywide, Health & Wellness, Santa Ana, Top Stories
Study Casts Doubt On Effectiveness of Townsend Gang Injunction
The study, done by a Bay Area-based nonprofit that advocates for minority communities, found Santa Ana’s gang injunction in the Townsend Street neighborhood will not necessarily reduce serious crime in the long run and further erodes residents’ trust of police.
Posted inCountywide, Government, Top Stories
New State Law Increases Protections for Undocumented Youth
Assembly Bill 899, which Gov. Jerry Brown signed last week, mandates that records for those in the juvenile justice system remain confidential “regardless of the juvenile’s immigration status.”
Posted inCountywide, Government, Health & Wellness, Top Stories
Years in the System But Still No Certainty
When 14-year-old Alex was placed in deportation proceedings in 2012, his mother, Marisa, feared he would be immediately deported. That didn’t happen.
Posted inCountywide, Government, Top Stories
Lost Boys: ‘Out of Sight, Out of Mind’
Juveniles placed in deportation proceedings by ICE are turned over to the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement and placed in facilities throughout the country. It’s a process that’s been questioned by attorneys, mental health experts and youth advocates.
Posted inCountywide, Government, Top Stories
Lost in the Deportation Labryinth
The day Marisa’s 14-year-old son was taken into custody from Orange County’s juvenile hall by immigration authorities in the summer of 2012, she set about trying to get answers.
Posted inCountywide, Government, Investigative, Top Stories
Lost Boys: A Battle Over the Constitutional Rights of Undocumented Minors
Advocates say U.S. immigration officials routinely violate the constitutional rights of juveniles by interrogating them in juvenile detention before informing them of their rights.
Posted inCountywide, Government, Investigative, Top Stories
Lost Boys: Counties Now Less Likely to Refer Juveniles to Immigration Authorities
Over the past several years, probation departments across California, from Orange County to Sacramento, have significantly overhauled the process used to determine when and if the agency should contact immigration authorities if a juvenile in custody is suspected of being undocumented.
