Group alleges profiling

BY DAVID HARPER World Staff Writer
Sunday, August 26, 2007
8/26/07 at 1:43 AM

It will tell the Justice Department about reported discrimination against Hispanics by law enforcers, its leader says.

The president of a national advocacy organization said Saturday that it would formally report to the U.S. Department of Justice what he described as instances of discrimination against Hispanics by local law enforcers.

The Rev. Miguel Rivera, the president of the National Coalition of Latino Clergy and Christian Leaders, said he had heard of more than 30 examples of area residents being targeted on suspicion of not having immigration documents.

"That's racial profiling," Rivera said Saturday before speaking to a crowd at a Tulsa immigration information rally organized by the American Dream Coalition.

In a subsequent press release posted on his group's Web site, Rivera said the coalition was creating a "database which includes the name, badge number and patrol car plate identification of each local police officer that intervenes with any member of the community as a result of what is believed to be racial profiling."

The information will be of assistance "as we gather evidence for our federal reports and case development," the notice said

Rivera said representatives of the group had already talked with the Justice Department about investigating the allegations.

Federal officials explained the formal process involved in requesting Justice Department involvement, and the group plans to start the required paperwork as soon as Monday, he said.

Tulsa Police Sgt. Stephanie Jackson said department policy bars racial profiling and that the Police Department and the Mayor's Office take such claims "very seriously."

"We're not going to pull anybody over based on their race," she said.

Anybody who feels that such activity has occurred can notify the department's Office of Integrity and Compliance or the city's Human Rights Department and the claim will be thoroughly investigated, she said.

Rivera did not limit his criticism to the Police Department. He also said employees of the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office "need to learn how to do their job" when dealing with Hispanics.

Chief Deputy Tim Albin said sheriff's officials had met with local Hispanic community leaders, but he has never heard from anyone from Rivera's coalition.

Albin said sheriff's representatives would be glad to listen to the group's concerns and look into the claims. He said the office would be glad to show the group statistics and data that would demonstrate that any claims of racial profiling are invalid.

A senior executive of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Julie Myers, was in Tulsa to announce that 31 sheriff's employees and seven law enforcement officers from other jurisdictions would begin a training program that will enable local officials to enforce immigration laws.

Albin said the participation of the sheriff's office in the program demonstrates its dedication to enforcing immigration laws properly.

Rivera reiterated on Saturday his statement that a lawsuit challenging House Bill 1804 is imminent.

HB 1804, the state's new sweeping illegal immigration measure, is to take effect Nov. 1. Rivera said a lawsuit could be filed in about two weeks in Tulsa federal court.

The Web site of the National Coalition of Latino Clergy and Christian Leaders says it consists of more than 16,000 churches in more than 30 states.

Previous DOJ scrutiny

In February 2001, the city was notified that the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division was scrutinizing the Police Department under the jurisdiction of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.

That law bars police offi cers from engaging in a pattern or practice of conduct “that deprives persons of rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States.”

Even though the Justice Department never intervened in a then-ongoing class-action case filed against the city by black police officers, plaintiffs’ attorney Louis Bullock testified in July 2003 that he believed the DOJ’s interest in what was happening in Tulsa was important in reaching a settlement in that lawsuit.

David Harper 581-8359
david.harper@tulsaworld.com

Associated Images:

Audience members listen to speakers at Saturday’s American Dream Coalition immigration information rally at the Union school district’s Performing Arts Center.