Study Looks at Immigrants' Incarceration Rate-Less Likely to Commit Crimes than Native Californians

[The Straight Story]

Study Looks at Immigrants' Incarceration Rate
Written by Karen Massie, Reporter

Study Finds Immigrants Less Likely to Commit Crimes than Native Californians, Karen Massie's Report, 2/26/08


New research about immigrants is certain to add more fuel to the controversy over who should be allowed into the United States and who should be kept out.

Illegal immigrants have been blamed for significantly increasing how much taxpayers shell out for California's prison system. But a study by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) shows immigrants are not the ones clogging up the courts and prison system.

The PPIC found that although the foreign-born make up 35 percent of the state's population, they account for only 17 percent of the inmates housed in state prisons.

"Every wave of immigration has been demonized," said Francisco Estrada of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Estrada said he wasn’t surprised by the findings because he has studied the history of immigration in the U.S. "People come and immigrate into this country because they want to create a better life for themselves and their families and they do that by working," he said.

Complaints about immigrants date back to the 1700s when Americans feared German immigrants, says Estrada. "Even people like Ben Franklin were complaining about German immigrants that had settled in Pennsylvania. He said they refused to assimilate. They established German schools and they refused to learn English," Estrada said.

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