FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

            Today over 1500 refugees and migrants have arrived at the U.S. Mexican border in the city of Tijuana.  They claim they are fleeing poverty in their home countries of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala.  Meanwhile, about 6000 troops sent by President Trump are waiting for them on the U.S. side of the border, after building concrete barriers and putting up barbed wire fences to keep them out.  So you might say that the two sides are poised for a show-down, or what some might dub a "Mexican stand-off" -- literally.

            Now the question is what to do about the would-be immigrants?  Let them in? Keep them out? Or work out some procedure for selecting a small subset of the migrants to let in and send the others back?  The debate about what to do is raging furiously, with conservatives generally wanting them to be kept out and liberals wanting to let some or most of them in.

            It is a conflict that criminal justice expert Paul Brakke has examined closely in his book Dealing with Illegal Immigrants and the Opioid Crisis, written primarily for law enforcement professionals and academics, and in a chapter of his new book for the general public Crime in America, which provides an overview of crime and the criminal justice system.  Brakke  writes from a conservative perspective, so he is in agreement with many other conservatives who are wary about the dangers of letting large numbers of immigrants enter the country, especially without sufficient time to vet them. 

            There is also a danger of letting in younger refugees and asylum seekers, because younger immigrants have a higher rate of crime than other Americans of the same age.  As Brakke points out in both books, "the data shows that illegals add to the crime rates, if only because their younger age makes them more prone to crime."

            Accordingly, in his books, Brakke offers several suggestions for fixing the illegal immigration mess, which would apply to deciding how to deal with about 4000 to 5000 refugees and migrants who are arriving in several caravans, many now driven by trucks to speed their journey. Among his suggestions are these:

            1) Secure the border with a combination of walls, fences, greater patrols, drones, and more border security agents.  This effort can be especially important now in that many individuals may take advantage of their growing numbers to seek alternate pathways into the United States. They might be willing to risk an illegal entry rather than wait for the possibility of a slow entry for a very small number of individuals in the caravan.

            2) Discourage illegal immigration by eliminating the access of illegal immigrants to most services provided by city, state, or local governments, which might lead many such immigrants to leave the country voluntarily.  Yes, they may be fleeing from some very bad conditions in their home countries.  But the U.S. does not have the resources to accommodate a large influx of immigrants, especially since it is now suffering from a variety of homegrown problems, most notably the effects of hurricanes and other storms in the Eastern Seaboard, fires in California, and over 300 mass shootings all over America so far this year.

            3) Monitor immigrant crime more closely by requiring the local and state criminal justice departments at all levels -- from the local police to the state attorney general's office and courts -- to keep accurate records of all crimes.  They should also include information to indicate whether the person who has been arrested, tried, convicted, and sentenced to prison is a legal or immigrant and from what country.  Then, this data will provide a clear picture of the extent to which illegal immigrants are involved in criminal activity across the country.

            4) Institute strict penalties and deportations for crimes committed by illegal immigrants.  Perhaps tag those deported with microchips so they can be more readily identified if they attempt to re-enter the United States.

            5) Encourage community members to cooperate to support the arrest or deportation of illegal immigrants engaged in criminal activity.

            6) Limit the number of legal immigrants allowed into the U.S. each year and be more selective about the immigrants admitted in order to select those who offer the most skills and education, and therefore are better able to contribute to American society.

            Certainly Brakke sympathizes with the tragic situation of the migrants and refugees having to flee their country.  But this migration is part of a much larger problem of over 65 million displaced persons, including over 25 million refugees, worldwide due to wars, poverty, and turmoil within their countries.  Unfortunately, these people have few options and most of them are ending up in refugee camps and tent cities or becoming homeless.  Even so, as much as one might sympathize with their plight, it just is not possible for other countries to incorporate this many displaced persons into their countries, especially when these refugees speak another language.  The danger is destabilizing the host country and creating an even greater risk of crime and disorder in that country.  The same is true for the migrants and refugees trying to get into America.  It is simply not possible to take in the vast majority of them without creating even more crime and dissension within the U.S.

            To learn more about Brakke's views on immigration, you can now get a free review copy of Crime in America, which includes a chapter on the subject. The book is available for preorder, too.  Brakke is offering these books for free to anyone who wants to review and comment on the book.  Also, copies are available for government officials who might turn some of these suggestions for reducing crime and fixing the criminal justice system into legislation.   Members of the media are additionally invited to request copies of the book.

            To help draw attention to these suggested fixes in the book, Brakke has launched a video and social media campaign with five new videos each day.  The first 10 videos are featured on his American Leadership Books' YouTube channel.  Among the most recent videos are "The Wall" https://youtu.be/ReMs1d3GF74 and "The Immigration Debate" https://youtu.be/a5BjvJUQzqY

            Brakke brings to this discussion of crime and immigration in American society an extensive background in researching the subject as the publisher of American Leadership Books and the author of seven books.  Six of them deal with what to do about crime in America, and one deals with understanding and healing the great national divides in America.  Other past books include: The Price of Justice in America and Fixing the U.S. Criminal Justice System.  Since these first books were designed especially for law enforcement professionals, government officials, and academics, Brakke is now adapting these books for a general audience and will be bringing out his next books -- Fractured America, Prisons in America, and Immigration and Crime in America -- in the next few months.

            Copies of Crime in America for review are available to the general public at no charge at www.crimeinamericathebook.com.   For media copies of the book, along with additional information on American Leadership Books and Paul Brakke, and to set up interviews, please contact:

Jana Collins

Jones & O'Malley

Toluca Lake, California

jana@jonesomalley.com

(818) 762-8353