Hundreds pack Greeley gathering on illegal immigration and crime

Event part of effort to establish Greeley ICE office

Fernando Quintero, Rocky Mountain News

Published September 19, 2007 at midnight

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GREELEY — A standing-room-only crowd of about 600 packed an auditorium at Island Grove Park to hear about crimes committed by illegal immigrants as part of efforts to establish a local Immigration and Customs Enforcement office.

The meeting, titled "Illegal Immigration: The Untold Stories" and organized by Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck, had drawn criticism from Hispanic leaders as being one-sided because it highlighted crimes committed only by Hispanics. But only one protester stood outside the 4-H building where the event took place.

Few Hispanics attended the event. About an hour into the meeting, Assistant U.S. Attorney Cliff Stricklin, who was invited to speak, addressed the crowd.

"I'm so glad to see so many cowboy hats, boots and American flags," he said to thunderous applause.

Following a presentation by the Weld County Sheriff's Color Guard and the Pledge of Allegiance, the meeting began with a slide show detailing crimes committed by illegal immigrants.

The slides listed the crimes committed by Hispanic men, whose pictures appeared in the upper left hand corner of the screen — all of them with prior convictions to illustrate the point that they had fallen through the law enforcement net.

"There is a contrast between what's happening in courtrooms and on the streets, and what's happening with policy makers in Washington, D.C.," Buck said. "There's a rift. And we need to fill that rift with information. We need more resources to deport dangerous criminals."

Although the meeting highlighted crimes committed only by illegal immigrants, Buck said twice "the vast majority of illegal immigrants in this country do not commit crimes other than coming into this country illegally."

Detective Mike Prill, of the Greeley Police Department, was scheduled to detail crimes committed by gang members who entered the country illegally and discuss the effect that illegal immigration has on the gangs in Greeley. But he noted that of the 513 known gang members in Weld County, none is an illegal immigrant.

The meeting also included testimony from victims of crimes committed by illegal immigrants.

Roland and Charlotte -Shetler, of Garden City, were hit by a male drunken driver who was in the country illegally. The driver's female passenger, whose immigration status was not disclosed, later died of injuries sustained in the crash.

The Shetlers suffered minor injuries, but they said the emotional trauma was life-altering.

"I can't drive by the intersection where we got hit," said Charlotte Shetler. "It just brings back too many painful memories."

The meeting closed with a taped interview with Enedina Martinez, a legal permanent resident from Mexico whose husband was killed two years ago by an illegal immigrant who was driving drunk.

Martinez — who was profiled last year in a Rocky Mountain News series about illegal immigration, The Border Within — cried as she was asked about the loss of her husband and her children's father.

"I think people should have their legal documents and identification," she said. "That way, what happened to me won't happen to other people."

quinterof@rockymountainnews.com or 303-954-5250

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