by Glynn Wilson
BIRMINGHAM — In reaction to the Alabama Republicans’ discriminatory and unconstitutional new immigration law, most of which was stuck down the federal appeals court in Atlanta Monday and found to foster widespread discrimination against legally born Hispanic American citizens, mainly children, the Obama administration has formed a special Civil Rights Enforcement Unit to expand the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Alabama to handle civil rights violations.
The announcement was made in the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, committed to both preserving and overcoming Birmingham’s troubled civil rights history, by U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and Thomas E. Perez, assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
“The new unit is part of a broader civil rights initiative that will enhance the ability of the U.S. Attorney to enforce federal civil rights laws and ensure that all persons within the Northern District of Alabama enjoy the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution,” Perez said in the statement.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Posey, who has been nationally recognized for his role in the successful prosecution of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing cases, will head the unit. It will prosecute the full spectrum of federal civil rights crimes and includes excessive force by police, human trafficking and hate crimes, as well as law enforcement corruption cases.
The new unit will handle civil and criminal cases, and include attorneys in the Civil and Appellate Divisions of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, who will focus on cases involving the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), fair housing, fair lending, Equal Credit Opportunity Act, Service Member Civil Relief Act, Uniform Services Employment and Re-Employment Rights Act (USERRA) and civil cases designed to remedy “patterns and practices” of “police misconduct.”
The unit will also pursue civil environmental cases and environmental justice cases under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, according to the announcement, and it will work closely with the DOJ Criminal Rights Division and other federal law enforcement agencies.
During the event, Vance also announced the formation of the U.S. Attorney’s Community Advisory Board for Civil Rights, a group that will consist of community stakeholders and organizations. The advisory board will keep the U.S. attorney and federal law enforcement informed on emerging issues and community concerns, while providing a flow of information back to the community on civil rights enforcement. This group has already raised concerns that have led the U.S. attorney to form an anti-bullying working group.
“The formation of the Civil Rights Enforcement Unit and community working group will facilitate future prosecutions by providing dedicated prosecutors and a formal arrangement to coordinate the flow of information from affected communities to law enforcement,” Vance said.
FBI Special Agent Cornelius Harris and Department of Homeland Security Investigation’s Resident Agent in Charge David Denton joined the U.S. Attorney and the Assistant Attorney General for Tuesday’s announcement. The FBI is the primary federal enforcement agency for federal civil rights crimes, and ICE investigates human trafficking cases and other crimes.
“The U.S. attorney’s civil rights initiative reflects the Justice Department’s renewed commitment to aggressive civil rights enforcement,” Perez said. “By efficiently devoting resources and attention to these crimes, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will do its part to ensure the vindication of every American’s constitutional rights.”
© 2012, Glynn Wilson. All rights reserved.
