Field of Penology
Anoka County Jail
132 Domain Names Seized During Project Cyber Monday
On November 26, 2012, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced that 132 domain names selling counterfeit merchandise were seized during this year’s “Project Cyber Monday 3” and “Project Transatlantic” operations. The operations were led by ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the European Police Office (Europol), and law enforcement in Belgium, Denmark, France, Romania, and the United Kingdom.
101 website domains were seized by operation Cyber Monday 3. Project Transatlantic seized 31 domain names including domains like .eu, .be, .dk, .fr, .ro, and .uk. The websites were specifically targeted by the IPR Center.
ICE Director John Morton stated: “This operation is a great example of the tremendous cooperation between ICE and our international partners at the IPR Center. Our partnerships enable us to go after criminals who are duping unsuspecting shoppers all over the world. This is not an American problem, it is a global one and it is a fight we must win.”
The seized domain names are currently in the government’s custody. If visitors enter the domain names in their browser, they will see a banner that notifies them of the seizure and explains the federal crime of willful copyright infringement. In addition to the domain names, $175,000 paid through PayPal accounts is being targeted by the government as well.
1,529 domain names have previously been seized by the United States since 2010. 684 of the seized domain names are now property of the U.S. government. The seizure banner has been viewed over 110 million times.
Tod Cohen, the vice president and deputy general counsel of Government Relations for eBay Inc., stated: “PayPal and eBay Inc. pride ourselves in going above and beyond in the fight against the illegal online trafficking of counterfeit goods by partnering with law enforcement and rights owners globally, and we hope that this is fair warning to criminals that the Internet is not a safe place to try and sell fake goods.”
U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Maryland, Colorado, New Jersey, California, New York, and Texas helped serve warrants. Assistance was provided by the Justice Department’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.
Source: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Finally Caught: Illegal Alien Wanted for Rape
On October 11, 2012, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) announced that it successfully tracked and apprehended the illegal alien after finding him in southwest Detroit.
The man’s name is Miguel Angel Davila- Ruiz. He was wanted by the ICE on four counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor. The crime was reported in Pontiac, Michigan, and ERO and the Sheriff’s Office issued an arrest warrant in July of 2012. They offered a $2,000 reward for information about Davila-Ruiz, and the media immediately became involved.
After receiving information from numerous sources, officers under the ERO Fugitive Operations located Davila-Ruiz on October 10. He was hiding in a residence on the 1200 block of Central Street located in southwest Detroit.
As the officers were making an entry into the house, Davila-Ruiz and another man exited from the rear of the house on foot. The chase didn’t last long. The two men were apprehended in the backyard of the home.
Davila-Ruiz was moved to the Sheriff’s Office on the night of October 10. After the investigation is completed, he will face sentencing. He will then return to ICE custody where he will begin to be processed for deportation.
The other male was also arrested on administrative immigration violations. He will remain in ICE custody until he is deported.
Rebecca Adducci, the field office director for ERO Detroit, stated: “The arrest of this alleged violent alien is at the absolute core of what we do. ICE is using its unique immigration enforcement authorities to safeguard our communities from criminal aliens and others who pose a public safety threat, including suspects attempting to evade law enforcement. I’m very fortunate to lead a team of officers who day in and day out exhibit unmatched skill and professionalism in the pursuit of criminal aliens.”
Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Arizona Law
The
area of state Arizona law has enjoyed, or been burdened with, newly
intense scrutiny and comment since the legislation commonly referred to
as SB (State Bill) 1070 was first proposed as an overhaul for the
state’s immigration laws. The new Arizona law, formally referred to as
the Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act, was
generally seen, both by opponents and proponents, as one of the
“toughest” laws to be passed against illegal immigration to the U.S. for
a long time. Most worrying to critics of the new Arizona law is the
place it reserves for ethnicity and race in empowering police officers
to act against people they suspect of being in the state illegally.
While supporters of the Arizona law point to this allegation as a
mischaracterization, citing the law’s requirement that this not be the
only criteria for enforcement, Arizona law opponents believe it will
lead to an increased degree of discrimination against the state’s Latino
residents, both legally resident and otherwise.
Outside
of the specter of potential human rights abuses, the Arizona law has
also received criticism, and in some cases legal challenges and
opposition, due to the claim that it has usurped the rightful place of
the federal government in enforcing illegal immigration laws. As such,
Arizona law opponents have argued that the federal government has
largely shirked its responsibilities for this matter, and that the
state’s intervention has been made available by the epidemic of violence
on the other side of the border.