Border Youth Project

I am writing regarding the Feb. 5 editorial "Too Sensitive and Serious for Shortcuts," which criticizes Orange County's Border Youth Project whereby certain Mexican National juvenile offenders will be returned to Mexico to the custody of that country's juvenile authorities. The editorial argues incorrectly that the federal Immigration and Naturalization Service will be bypassed, that Mexican juveniles will be denied their legal due process to a deportation hearing and that there is no real concern shown for the well-being of these young people.

"Jorge Estrada!" A Mexican immigration official searched the roomful of boys for the one she wanted. Sullen-faced, in heavy-metal T-shirts and worn pants, the boys stared back. They were the weekly shipment of children deported to Mexico from Orange and Los Angeles counties, where they had been arrested, mostly for stealing. Every Thursday morning they arrive, bleary-eyed from the trip, shuffling into the Mexican immigration office at the Otay Mesa border crossing in Tijuana.

"Jorge Estrada!" A Mexican immigration official searched the roomful of boys for the one she wanted. Sullen-faced, in heavy-metal T-shirts and worn pants, the boys stared back. They were the weekly shipment of children deported to Mexico from Orange and Los Angeles counties, where they had been arrested, mostly for stealing. Every Thursday morning they arrive, bleary-eyed from the trip, shuffling into the Mexican immigration office at the Otay Mesa border crossing in Tijuana.

I am writing regarding the Feb. 5 editorial "Too Sensitive and Serious for Shortcuts," which criticizes Orange County's Border Youth Project whereby certain Mexican National juvenile offenders will be returned to Mexico to the custody of that country's juvenile authorities. The editorial argues incorrectly that the federal Immigration and Naturalization Service will be bypassed, that Mexican juveniles will be denied their legal due process to a deportation hearing and that there is no real concern shown for the well-being of these young people.

A state appellate court has declared that San Diego's Border Youth Project acts within the U.S. Constitution when it returns undocumented Mexican juveniles who are convicted of crimes here to their country for punishment. The widely observed case drew a 2-1 decision by the 4th District Court of Appeal, with the majority ruling that the cooperative effort between California and Mexican authorities doesn't conflict with federal powers.

Despite objections from immigration lawyers, the Orange County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a program that will send some Mexican juvenile offenders back to Mexico to be reunited with their families and serve out their sentences in that country. "The rights of the minors will be protected," said Michael Schumacher, the county's chief probation officer. "I think everyone will be better off with this program--certainly the juveniles will be."

"Jorge Estrada!" A Mexican immigration official searched the roomful of boys for the one she wanted. Sullen-faced, in heavy-metal T-shirts and worn pants, the boys stared back. They were the weekly group of illegal immigrant children deported to Mexico from Los Angeles and Orange counties, where they had been arrested, mostly for stealing. Every Thursday morning they arrive, bleary-eyed from the trip, shuffling into the Mexican immigration office at the Otay Mesa border crossing in Tijuana.

The Mexican delegation that visited Sylmar Juvenile Hall on Wednesday came from Tijuana, a city that--like Los Angeles--must contend with social problems that originated elsewhere. An economic boom in the border region has doubled Tijuana's population to about 2 million over the past decade. But, combined with the continuing massive influx of emigrants bound for the United States, growth has also produced a small army of street children--an estimated 8,000 homeless youths from all over Mexico.

Undocumented Mexican youths who commit minor crimes in Los Angeles County can be shipped back to their native country for punishment, the Board of Supervisors decided Tuesday. Under the Border Youth Project approved by the board, youngsters have a choice of facing prosecution in Los Angeles or being sent to Tijuana, where Mexican juvenile authorities will deal with them. Without comment, the supervisors unanimously authorized a $117,000 contract with Community Services Resource Corp.

For years, San Diego Juvenile Court authorities had grappled with a vexing problem: how to handle a persistent cadre of Mexican youths repeatedly committing crimes on this side of the border. Typically, a Mexican minor convicted of a modest offense was either deported or shipped to Campo for a stay at the county's rural detention facility. But neither option proved effective.

Is sending undocumented youthful offenders back to Mexico a humane alternative to custody in U. S. juvenile facilities? Or is it an inhumane policy that shows blatant disregard for their rights? Those were the divergent views presented Wednesday before a three-judge panel of the California Court of Appeal in San Diego. At issue is the future of a policy used in San Diego County for certain undocumented offenders.