Arizona immigration law puts police in 'impossible situation'

Los Angeles – Local law enforcement agencies have moved front and center in the national debate over immigration reform with the signing of Arizona’s SB1070 immigration law.

The law – signed Friday by Gov. Jan Brewer (R) – requires law enforcement to check the residency status of those thought to be in the country illegally. Police unions were divided on the issue and some leading law enforcement agencies petitioned Governor Brewer not to sign the bill – fearing racial profiling and loss of the public's trust.

Police face contradicting missions, critics argue. “This obviously puts police in an impossible situation because it requires them to pursue two goals simultaneously: to enforce the immigration laws; and to enforce the criminal laws, keep the peace, provide assistance, and all the other ordinary tasks of police officers,” says Joel Jacobsen,assistant attorney general, criminal appeals division for New Mexico. “Which goal should they pursue?"

Under the new law, the consequences for victim and perpetrator will not align, says Mr. Jacobsen. "It will frequently not be possible to do both, because the officer will be required to arrest perpetrator and victim both, and the punishment experienced by the victim of a violent crimewill frequently be more severe and life-disrupting – deportation – than that experienced by the perpetrator – a night in jail, perhaps.”