This outcry is being heeded by law enforcement officials and immigrants throughout society.
Many officials are now reluctant to apprehend individuals based solely upon their looks or something as flimsy as 'reasonable suspicion'. Discovering that those they apprehend are productive, responsible citizens with jobs and families is a deterrent for apprehending similar individuals in the future.
Recent literature shows that another reason for reluctance on the part of law enforcement officials to vigorously pursue those individuals who may be in the United States illegally is the effect it will have on those citizens that are here legally but live in the same geographical areas that house the illegal immigrants. Many experts believe that vigorous enforcement will mean a lower reported rate of crime, but not necessarily a lower rate of crime. The difference between the two, is that criminal acts may still be taking place, they just might not be reported as often.
This is oftentimes due to the reluctance of the victim to 'get involved', especially with law enforcement officials who may view the victims with suspicion. This is especially true for immigrants, recent or not, many of them are still acclimating themselves to American culture, which in many cases is quite different than there own.
Sometimes police officers, even with all of the training they receive, can be perceived as being unsympathetic towards the victims they are attempting to assist. Many times the victims have been exposed to police officers who may seem to be less than caring in nature. One recent article states that the victim's reluctance to report violence is that they feel there is no empathy from the responding police officers. The article states that victims "often invoke law enforcement's lax response in specific threats to further harm the victim" (Rosenfeld, 2008, pg. 257). If police officials are seen as too lax in this case, they are oftentimes seen as too overbearing as well. Displaying an overbearing attitude towards citizens who are already concerned about whether they will be questioned on their status as citizens can only add fuel to the fire.
Additionally many of these victims of violence are already reluctant to report such abuse due to the stigma attached to such actions. One recent article tells the story of a Muslim immigrant who denied that her husband beat her after police arrived at her door. The article states; "she was thinking of her Muslim immigrant community and the role she was expected to play: faithful wife, submissive mother" (Smith, 2008, pg. 20).
Even more importantly in this particular situation was the fact that the woman was also worried about how she would continue on in daily life without spousal support. According to Smith the wife was "thinking of her children and how she would support them without an income" (Smith, pg. 20).
These factors, coupled with the fear of arrest and deportation, would likely increase the possibility that legal (and illegal) citizens would not report crimes, which means that criminals could then operate with impunity, knowing that even if they are recognized, their crimes would go unreported. The secondary effect to this scenario is that the criminals would feel even more emboldened without deterrents and would commit crimes more frequently and of a more violent nature. Many times crimes are seen as happening outside of the home, but domestic violence is a prevalent problem in today's society.
There are a wide variety of situations that law enforcement officials deal with on a daily basis that are risky and are of a violent nature. A recent study estimated "that between ten and twenty percent of children in the United States are exposed to domestic violence annually" (pg. 1). Their numbers were based primarily on those children suffering violence in the home. The numbers did not include the street violence, or the witnessing of violence by homeless children and families that are exposed to those situations on almost a daily basis. Another recent study states, "violence is one of the most prevalent elements in the lives of homeless families with young children" (Swick, 2008, pg. 81).
The study continues by defining the various forms of violence which these families are faced and concludes, "violence disrupts the normal bonding between parent and child" and that "it isolates and degrades families" (Swick, pg. 81).
Switching the focus of local police enforcement efforts could indirectly affect the lifestyles and living situations of many domestic violence victims. These include not only the spouses, but affects the children living in the households as well. One recent study...
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