Community Shield

Having worked on, and won, deportation cases, De-Bug’s ACJP members have been sending powerful public messages about the need to keep local law enforcement and federal immigration separated. As De-Bug joined several immigrant rights advocacy groups at Sacred heart Services for a press conference, ACJP organizer Stephanie Flores was quoted by CBS News.

SAN JOSE (CBS SF) — A coalition of San Jose community groups Friday gathered to send a loud message of disapproval to Police Chief Chris Moore on his decision to keep a pair of recently enlisted federal immigrations investigators.

“Our message is clear: we don’t want ICE here,” Stefanie Flores, a spokeswoman for Silicon Valley DeBug, said at a news conference Friday morning. “We want to work with the police to find real solutions.”

ACJP organizers met with ICE supervisors around the San Jose Police Department’s participation in Community Shield — which would place two ICE agents in the gang enforcement unit. In the below AP story, we, along with our friends at SIREN, comment on why ICE and local law enforcement collaborations is a public safety danger.

SAN JOSE, Calif. — San Jose has dubbed itself the “Capital of Silicon Valley” and has for years prided itself on being one of the safest big cities in America. Yet, it is on pace for more than 50 killings in 2011, a rate not seen in about 20 years.

Few in the San Francisco Bay area’s most populous city know exactly why it has had 28 murders so far this year, already surpassing 2010’s total of 20. “You can’t put your finger on one thing,” said Sgt. Jason Dwyer, a police spokesman. It could be an increase in gang crime, Dwyer said. The department is hoping that the budget-related layoffs of nearly 70 officers in June will not have a negative impact. “It’s been a trying time for us,” Dwyer said.

Albert Cobarrubias Justice Project

Creators of “participatory defense” – a community organizing model for people facing charges, their families, and communities to impact the outcome of cases and transform the landscape of power in the court system

CBS News: Groups Tell San Jose Police Chief To Oust ICE Agents

Huffington Post: San Jose Homicide Rate: Silicon Valley City Battles Surging Murders