Arkansas justice getting better, Federal justice getting worse

The KeepArkansasLegal addressed some interesting stories concerning actions to address illegal aliens in the U.S.
- Ron Wood of The Morning News in an article Second Person Pleads Guilty To Harboring Illegal Aliens: A Springdale man pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to helping harbor illegal aliens.Prosecutors say Honorato Pedroza, 47, and others provided illegal aliens a place to stay and jobs at two local restaurants, so they could avoid detection. Gema Rivera-Soto, 42, pleaded guilty to the same charges Tuesday. In a deal with prosecutors, Pedroza agreed to plead guilty to one count of a four indictment, aiding and abetting the harboring illegal aliens. The other counts are expected to be dismissed as part of the plea deal at sentencing. Pedroza was facing up to 35 years in prison and up to $1 million in fines.The charges, which also included money laundering, arose from May 21 raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Agents arrested 15 adult Mexican nationals and four juvenile Mexican nationals in the May 21 raids, dubbed Operation "El Rancho Tejocote." Two adults from El Salvador also were arrested. . . . [Read More]

- The Washington Post by way of the New Observer in the article Judge Halts Immigration Crackdown: A federal judge barred the Bush administration Wednesday from launching a planned crackdown on U.S. firms that hire illegal immigrants, warning of its potentially "staggering" impact on law-abiding workers and companies. In a firm rebuke of the White House, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer of San Francisco granted a preliminary injunction against the president's plan to pressure employers to fire up to 8.7 million workers with suspect Social Security numbers, starting this fall. . . . [Read More]

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Tags: Arkansas, federal government, ICE, illegal aliens, illegal immigration, immigration enforcement, San Francisco, Springdale, US District Judge