Broken immigration system is a problem
Remember Mollie Tibbetts. Her name must never be forgotten. Her memory must be the focal point in the conversation regarding illegal immigration.
A 20-year-old University of Iowa student, Mollie was out for a run when she was abducted by Cristhian Rivera and subsequently murdered and her lifeless body hidden in a nearby cornfield. Rivera is in the country illegally.
Unlike the Kate Steinle tragedy in San Francisco, Brooklyn, Iowa, is not a sanctuary city. It is not a border community. It is like many cities across the country where folks live their lives with the hope that their loved ones have a reasonable expectation of safety. Sadly, this is not the reality.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds stated what many of us are feeling. To quote, “As Iowans, we are heartbroken, and we are angry. We are angry that a broken immigration system allowed a predator like this to live in our community.”
Advocates of illegal immigration point to statistics compiled by the Cato Institute that show arrest and violent crime rates are higher among natural-born Americans than
members of the immigrant population. Supporters use these numbers in defense of their advocacy of illegal immigration. I’m sure that is little comfort to the families of Kate Steinle and Mollie Tibbetts.
A conflicting piece of research by the Crime Prevention Research Center between 1985 and 2017 done in conjunction with the Arizona state prison population concluded that “undocumented immigrants are at least 146% more likely to be convicted of crime than other Arizonans.” The study also noted that the crimes committed were generally more serious in nature.
The Washington Post did a fact check on the Arizona study and stated that “The overall picture of immigrants and crime remains confused due to a lack of good data and contrary information.” Once again, the facts are clouded but the end results are self-evident. Innocent lives are being lost to individuals who reside in this country illegally.
The words of Governor Reynolds ring true. “We are angry that a broken immigration system allowed a predator like this to live in our community.”
We all should be.