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| Re: Woman on SUV kills girl on bike ----Update |
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Group: alt.philosophy · Group Profile
Author: KenKen Date: Jun 20, 2008 12:11
On Jun 20, 9:49Â am, KingOfTheApes yahoo.com> wrote:
Not only was the driver of a Ford Bronco that fatally struck a 12-year-
old girl unlicensed, but San Jose police say she is also an illegal
immigrant, renewing the debate over whether undocumented people should
be allowed to apply for driver's licenses.
The revelation that Adriana Fierro De Marin, 31, is in the country
illegally struck yet another chord with the family of Breanna
Slaughter-Eck, still reeling from the loss of the Hoover Middle School
sixth-grader.
"I'm worried that she just might flee now and walk away from all
this," said Joe Castro, the man who raised Breanna for the last four
years. For her part, Breanna's mother simply wants justice.
Breanna was biking home from Hoover on June 12, her last day of
school, when a Ford Bronco making a left turn slammed into her. The
crash is still under investigation and no charges have been filed.
But Breanna's death and the disclosure by authorities that Fierro De
Marin is an undocumented immigrant and unlicensed driver highlights
one of the more controversial topics lingering in the state Capitol.
There have been nine attempts since 1999 to allow undocumented
immigrants to apply for driver's licenses. Each of the efforts has
failed, opposed by Republicans who say it's inappropriate to provide
state services and benefits to people who are in the country
illegally.
State Sen. Gil Cedillo, D-Los Angeles, says safety is more important.
"We have, every day, 2 1/2 million people
taking the roads who, if given the opportunity, would apply for
driver's licenses," said Cedillo, whose latest proposal passed the
Senate and is back before the Assembly this summer. "We're endangering
the lives of pedestrians and motorists in California every single
day."
San Jose police encounter their fair share of undocumented, unlicensed
drivers, said Police Chief Rob Davis, who sees valid points on both
sides of the debate and notes that law enforcement remains caught in
the middle.
"When you are talking about illegal immigrants, there are a whole host
of social issues that have fallen on law enforcement," said Davis,
adding that local law enforcement is dealing with the lack of policy
from both federal and state levels.
Lt. Carl Neusel, an assistant division commander for the Santa Clara
County Sheriff's Office, estimates about a third of the unlicensed
drivers deputies encounter are undocumented. "It's a problem," he
said.
Safety statistics
More important, traffic experts say, the focus should be on all
unlicensed drivers, illegal immigrants or not, because statistics link
such drivers to more high-risk, hazardous behavior.
Statistics show that nationwide, one of every five fatal crashes
involves drivers without a valid license.
In California, nearly a quarter of all crashes from 2001 to 2005
involved drivers without a license, according to a study by the AAA
Foundation for Traffic Safety.
"Are these people risky? Yes," said Robert Scopatz, who co-authored
studies of unlicensed drivers for foundation.
Scopatz said unlicensed drivers cut across all demographics and that
unlicensed illegal immigrants are only a tiny portion of the problem.
Simply put, Scopatz said, unlicensed drivers tend to have more
societal issues, among them problems with alcohol or drugs that
prevent them from getting a license.
"The biggest risk they pose to society is that their bad attitudes are
reflected in their driving," he said.
In the San Jose area last year, the California Highway Patrol alone
issued 3,886 citations to drivers without a license. Statewide, CHP
issued 132,042 in 2007.
'Pretty common'
"Unfortunately, it's pretty common; we come across it more often than
we should," said Sgt. Trent Cross, spokesman for the Bay Area's
California Highway Patrol division. While having a license doesn't
guarantee safety, it helps, Cross said.
"It shows that you went to the DMV and passed the test, and it shows
you have a basic understanding of how to operate a motor vehicle."
The decision whether to file criminal charges against Fierro De Marin
will be made by the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office.
Local authorities aren't responsible for enforcing immigration laws,
and police in many cities, including San Jose, have standing policies
that limit officers from notifying immigration authorities about a
suspect's status unless a felony is involved.
In Fierro De Marin's case, police initially arrested her on suspicion
of felony vehicular manslaughter and driving without a license, a
misdemeanor, but released her to spend more time developing the case,
Davis said.
Since felony accusations were involved, police alerted immigration
officials about her status, Davis said.
Efforts to reach Fierro De Marin on Thursday were unsuccessful, but
last week she told the Mercury News she was driving to pick up her own
daughter from the same school when the crash happened. "I feel so bad.
I'm so, so sorry," said Fierro De Marin, whose family moved here from
Mexico 20 years ago. "It's as if it happened to me."
Meanwhile, Cedillo said Breanna's death should serve as a reminder
that many undocumented immigrants are driving California's streets and
highways without proper training.
Once again, Republicans oppose Cedillo's bill, SB 60.
"There are arguably good reasons why we want to know who is here - and
identification is not a bad idea - but what we do is we send a wrong
message to law-abiding Californians that we have to follow the law but
everyone else doesn't," said Assemblyman Anthony Adams, R-Monrovia.
"That's the fundamental problem."
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