Arizona deputy shot by alleged undocumented immigrant, officials say

Arizona deputy shot by alleged undocumented immigrant, officials say

CNN) -- A sheriff's deputy in central Arizona was shot Friday afternoon by an alleged illegal immigrant, authorities said.

The shooting comes amid a national debate over Arizona's tough new immigration law that allows police to demand proof of legal residency. Arizona lawmakers say the law is needed because the federal government has failed to enforce border security with Mexico, allowing more than 450,000 illegal immigrants to move into the state.

The Pinal County deputy, who was not immediately identified, contacted authorities after being wounded in the desert, saying he had been shot by an illegal immigrant with an AK-47, said Lt. Tammy Villar, a sheriff's spokeswoman.

Villar initially said the deputy was being transported to a hospital. However, she told CNN affiliate KNXV that authorities had lost radio contact with the deputy and that a search was on for him and the

more at: http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/04/30/arizona.deputy.shot/

"Frankly this is just a very horrible story, but we should not generalize," Alfonso Aguilar, former chief of the U.S. Citizenship Office, told CNN's Rick Sanchez when news of Friday's shooting broke. "We should focus on the criminality of the drug traffickers ... not scapegoat undocumented immigrants who do not pose any threat to society."

"Villar said Puroll, 53, was attacked about 5 miles south of I-8. She said the veteran deputy is assigned to patrol the area known for drug smuggling.

Babeu said Puroll was tracking the smugglers, who left behind large quantities of marijuana.

Babeu said up to 30 rounds were fired at the deputy, who returned fire with an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle and a handgun.

Villar said the attackers were armed with long guns and at least one handgun. She said gunfire aimed at the helicopters came about an hour after the initial incident. An unknown amount of marijuana apparently handled by the shooters remained in the desert."

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2010/04/30/20100430pinal-county-deputy-shot-immigrant30-ON.html#ixzz0mftU5Dzn