January 31, 2011
CONTACT: Micah McCoy, (972) 740-6675 or mmccoy@aclu-nm.org
SANTA FE, N.M. - Today, the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico (ACLU-NM) strongly condemned Governor Susana Martinez's executive order that mandated that police check the immigration status of everyone they arrest. This order rescinds Governor Richardson's order that instructed local law enforcement to refrain from inquiring into a suspect's immigration status.
The following can be attributed to Peter Simonson, ACLU Executive Director:
"This executive order invites racial profiling by giving an incentive to police to arrest people who look and sound "foreign." New Mexicans should not have to fear that a broken taillight or other pretextual stop will lead to their arrest because of the color of their skin. Gov. Martinez has created a SB 1070-like policy, contradicting her own commitment to keep our state from following in Arizona's footsteps."
The text of Governor Martinez's executive order can be found at: http://governor.state.nm.us/uploads/FileLinks/20e5f2e740f34a2297a940e2ba...
###
