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Thomas Rips Mexico in Illegals' Arrest Case: County Attorney Warns Nation Not to Meddle After Receiving Letter

Posted on: Saturday, 25 March 2006, 18:00 CST

By Gary Grado, The Tribune, Mesa, Ariz.

Mar. 25--Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas told Mexico not to meddle in his prosecution of illegal immigrants Friday, a day when thousands rallied in the streets against harsh immigration reform.

Thomas had a letter hand-delivered to the Consulate General of Mexico in Phoenix telling the Mexican government that it is responsible for the problems associated with illegal immigration.

Thomas wrote the letter in response to a March 9 letter the consulate sent Thomas outlining a number steps the Mexican government wanted him to take in presenting a case to the grand jury against 48 illegal immigrants charged with conspiracy to smuggle humans into Arizona.

"I'm frustrated both as county attorney and as an American that the Mexican government presumes to insinuate itself into criminal cases that originate from the very problem of illegal immigration that the government is directly fomenting," Thomas said.

Hours earlier as many as 20,000 people marched in Phoenix to protest restrictive border policies. Thomas said his response to Mexico was not timed to coincide with the rally.

Carlos Flores-Vizcarra, consulate general of Mexico, did not respond to an interview request made through a consulate spokeswoman.

Maricopa County sheriff's deputies arrested the 48 immigrants March 2, and a grand jury indicted them under Arizona's new anti-"coyote" law, which took effect Aug. 12.

The legal theory is that they were conspiring with the coyote, or human smuggler, to commit a felony by agreeing to pay him to commit the crime.

Defense attorneys, activists and some of the media have accused Thomas of racism and stepping beyond his jurisdiction by prosecuting crimes that traditionally have been tried by the federal government.

"It's a ludicrous charge," Thomas said. "Those labels are hurled with an intent to intimidate people in government into not doing the job. I for one will not be intimidated."

In seven points, Flores-Vizcarra asked Thomas to make sure the defendants received individual presentations to the grand jury and that all evidence favorable to them be presented.

Flores-Vizcarra wrote that he has a "very high interest in ensuring that the defendants receive due process of law as entitled by the Constitutions of the United States . . . and Arizona." Thomas wrote back that he found the letter "curious coming from a foreign government that actively encourages illegal immigration" by publishing and distributing a guide on crossing the border.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Tribune, Mesa, Ariz.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The Tribune

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