Pitt Criminal Law Professor to Testify Before Congress April 2

PITTSBURGH-David Harris, University of Pittsburgh professor of law, will testify before a joint hearing of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Immigration and the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties. The hearing will take place at 10 a.m. April 2 in the Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, D.C. The hearing is titled "Public Safety and Civil Rights Implications of State and Local Enforcement of Federal Immigration Laws."

"Getting state and local police involved in immigration enforcement will make our streets less safe," Harris said. "Giving our local officers immigration enforcement duties undermines the efforts of police departments to work with immigrant communities against crime and disorder. If immigrants think police are involved in immigration enforcement, they may be less willing to work with them."

Harris also warns that police have no training in the complexities of immigration law and may tend to fall back on racial or ethnic appearance, leaving police vulnerable to charges of racial profiling.

Harris, a professor of criminal law and procedure, homeland security, and evidence, is the nation's foremost expert on racial profiling. His book, "Profiles in Injustice: Why Racial Profiling Cannot Work" (The New Press, 2002), led the debate on the subject. His book, "Good Cops: The Case for Preventive Policing" (The New Press, 2005), showcases police programs around the United States that fought crime in partnership with communities.

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