FORT WORTH, Texas Two executives of a company that hired illegal immigrants for janitorial work at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport are going to prison.

A federal judge in Fort Worth today sentenced Karen Sue Rowell, president of Midwest Airport Services, to nine months in prison.

Edward John Pitre, who's the company's former operations manager, was sentenced to 15 months behind bars.

By Stephanie Armour, USA TODAY

The sun is barely up over the horizon when Juan Reyes arrives at Casa de Maryland, which operates a job site for day laborers here. Most days he comes to this parking lot to wait for painting, landscaping or other jobs. Reyes mills about with the other men who sit in groups quietly talking or sharing steaming tamales eaten off paper plates. He needs work, he says, so he can send money to support his three children, ages 18, 12 and 10, in Guatemala.

"Sometimes it's very hard, very hard (to find work)," says Reyes, 36, who is an undocumented worker who lives in Takoma Park. Still, he says, employers rarely ask to see paperwork and hire him even though he's in the country illegally. "They never ask."

But pressure is on to change that. Last month, the Department of Homeland Security vowed to expand its efforts to target employers who hire illegal immigrants, with Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff pledging to "counter the unscrupulous tactics of employers."

By Alan Elsner
 
 
A one-day nationwide strike and business boycott got underway on Monday to demand legal rights for millions of illegal immigrants, with many U.S. businesses shutting down voluntarily to avoid disruption.

Early reports suggested many of the estimated 11.5-12 million illegal immigrants in the country were obeying a call to stay away from work and boycott businesses, despite a mixed message from immigrant-rights organizations, some of which opposed the action.

In New York City's Union Square, the normally bustling open-air market operated at a fraction of its typical activity. On Broadway, the usually chaotic sidewalk shops of cheap import goods were mostly shuttered.

The crux is whether a federal racketeering law can apply to firms using undocumented workers

By Nicole Gaouette
Times Staff Writer

WASHINGTON — In a case that could provide a new way to crack down on firms that hire undocumented immigrants, the Supreme Court on Wednesday considered whether companies could be charged with racketeering if they used contractors to hire undocumented employees.

The case was brought by employees of Mohawk Industries Inc., a Georgia carpet maker, who say the company depressed their wages by hiring undocumented immigrants.

The justices focused on narrow questions: Whether a firm and an outside contractor fit the definition of an "enterprise" under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations statute, or RICO, and whether corporations could be sued at all under a law originally meant to chase down the mob.

 US agriculture and immigration tied in a knot

By Christine StebbinsWed

In the debate about how tough the United States should be on millions of illegal immigrants, Big Agriculture is warning Americans that the $12 trillion U.S. economy could be forced to go on a big diet if illegal immigrants are restricted.