By Carol Costello and Ronni Berke, CNN
(CNN) – Politicians and some police say Arizona's tough, new immigration law is desperately needed to stop a wave of violent crime committed by illegal immigrants "pouring over the border." Critics say this kind of talk is an excuse to use racial profiling to lock up people who are less likely to commit crimes than American citizens.
In Maricopa County, Arizona, Sheriff Joe Arpaio is all about finding and arresting illegal immigrants. According to his Web site, his deputies have questioned, arrested or detained more than 38,000 of them to date. Three weeks ago, Arpaio said, “Right now and in this area, we have 100 people in jail right now charged with murder that are here illegally.”
It's a scary number for those living in a state bordering Mexico, a country with a violent drug cartel problem. But, critics say, while some illegal immigrants do commit violent crime, Arpaio's assertion that they are terrorizing Arizona en masse is simply false.
“When we look at the data, when we look at the real numbers, we find that those claims are wildly exaggerated, if not outright untrue,” says Professor David Harris of the University of Pittsburgh Law School.
According to the FBI, violent crime in Arizona dropped by nearly 1,500 reported incidents between 2005 and 2008. Property crimes also fell. Professor Harris says immigrants, legal and illegal, are five times less likely than native-born Americans to be involved in crime.
In Trenton, New Jersey – where 23% of the residents are immigrants – police agree. They say illegal immigrants are more likely to be victims of crime than criminals. Instead of aggressively pursuing illegals like Wendy Ochoa, Trenton embraces them, by allowing community groups to issue undocumented immigrants a "community identification card," that gives them access to libraries and doctors' offices.
Trenton police are not allowed to ask about immigration status, unless they suspect a felony. Police officials say most officers like the policy because it builds the community trust they need to fight crime.
“I haven’t had the opportunity to speak to the authorities in Arizona,” says Detective Bob Russo. “I don’t know if they've recognized to the extent that we have that the immigrant population can actually be an asset to us.”
In parts of Arizona, that argument doesn't fly. Governor Jan Brewer says 600 illegal immigrants convicted of serious criminal offenses are in Arizona jails, costing taxpayers millions of dollars a year. Supporters of Arizona's law say cities like Trenton only make things worse.
“They add to the schizophrenia within our public about whether we believe in the immigration rule of law or not,” says Heather MacDonald of the Manhattan Institute, a think tank. “They add to the problem of a magnet into the country where people know that if they can get across the border illegally, they basically are home free,” she adds.