Quick-hitting checkpoints authorities set up to catch unlicensed drivers are creating anxiety and fear among Hispanics on Oklahoma City’s south side.

Oklahoma Highway Patrol Capt. Chris West said troopers often set up checkpoints from Reno Avenue on the north to SW 59 along Interstate 44 to I-35 in Oklahoma City. This includes SW 29, a major thoroughfare that cuts through the Hispanic business district of south Oklahoma City.

“We focus on areas of low compliance,” West said. “That’s the only reason. We are not targeting any ethnic groups.”

The checkpoints are unpublicized and small, usually conducted by a few troopers at an intersection or an off-ramp a few times a month. Their purpose is to find people without driver’s licenses, driving with suspended or revoked licenses or operating a vehicle without insurance. Some drivers are given warnings; others are ticketed or arrested.

Immigrants affected

Illegal immigrants are among those caught. Often troopers call U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from the field, asking for direction on whether to arrest some of the people who are stopped, West said.

Troopers can use discretion on any action they take during the checks, West said.

State troopers couldn’t immediately provide numbers of arrests or citations for these types of checkpoints, which are only effective for about 45 minutes after they are set up. Word of the operations spread like wildfire as people text and telephone each other to avoid the area.

If people are following the law, they have nothing to worry about, West said.

“Our ultimate goal is to save lives and make sure people are following the law,” West said. “Whether they’re Ukranian, Bosnian, Iranian, Mexican ... it doesn’t matter.”

The Oklahoma County sheriff’s office also conducts checkpoints, but these are for drunken driving and are large, publicized operations. Oklahoma City Police Department doesn’t do random roadblocks, finding this is not an effective use of manpower, Capt. Patrick Stewart said.

Fear in the community

Belen Rodriguez, the Hispanic community liaison for the Oklahoma County sheriff’s office, said there is a fear of law enforcement among some in the Hispanic community. For that reason, she spends two days a week at an office at the Latino Community Development Agency, 420 SW 10.

Michael Brooks-Jimenez, an attorney who practices family and immigration law in south Oklahoma City, said many of his clients first come in contact with law enforcement because they don’t have a driver’s license. Many are put into deportation proceedings.

“It’s one of those things that’s a difficult situation,” Brooks-Jimenez said. “You don’t want to fault law enforcement for enforcing the law, but you have to wonder if this is the best use of their resources.”

He said he thinks it does have a chilling effect on the community and how they interact with law enforcement — legal and undocumented residents alike.

“They’re afraid to go out, drive up and down the streets and they’re less apt to call law enforcement,” he said.

Ahmad Al Zubi, 29, a legal resident from Jordan, said he’s gone through the checkpoints on SW 29, about a half-mile west of the gas station where he works near Newcastle Road.

He said they don’t bother him.

“There are gangs around here, shootings on the weekends, drugs,” said Al Zubi. If you have your paperwork in order, you’re good. If you don’t, you’re not.

Al Zubi said the checks are common in the area, particularly at SW 29 and I-44.

Cesar Soto, 21, who lives in the area near SW 29 and I-44, said the checkpoints are talked about often.

He knows law enforcement officers are aware of the undocumented immigrants in the community. Stories of families broken up after a parent or loved one is deported are common.

Riding in cars with more than one Hispanic person might wind up getting you pulled over, he said. But most law enforcement officers patrolling the area are looking for criminals.

“They’re looking for drugs ... if someone is drinking and driving,” he said.