A bizarre piece of news from Milwaukee, Washington caught our eye early this morning: former police officer and undocumented immigrant Oscar Ayala-Cornejo faces 6 to 12 months in jail for assuming the identity of his dead and buried cousin José Morales, a U.S. citizen. For years Oscar was known to his colleagues at the PD as José, ostensibly protecting and serving the community without anyone being the wiser. While the article acknowledges that it’s common for workers who’re here illegally to falsely claim someone else’s i.d., we’d like to point out how incredibly rare it is for that someone else to be dead! What’s more, the imposter in question used his fake persona to get a job that’s considered (in fact and in lore) beneficial to society.
So does enforcing the law exempt you from breaking it in the first place? For one end of the debate, ask this guy:

“Their personhood is not recognized since they don’t have the right piece of paper, but they’re working and they’re not harming anyone,” said Arnaldo Garcia of the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights […] The problem is that the system is set up to criminalize people for working.”

For the other extreme of the issue, ask anchor baby Michelle Malkin.

Milwaukee policeman found to be illegal immigrant [The Seattle Times]
Image [The Seattle Times]