US city first to grant ID cards for illegal immigrants

NEW YORK (AFP) - The northeastern city of New Haven will on Tuesday become the first town in the United States to make identity cards available to illegal immigrants, as part of efforts to crack down on crime.

Authorities in the small Connecticut city best known as the home of Yale University approved the plan last month. It is intended to make illegal immigrants more willing to report crimes and enable them to open bank accounts.

Illegal immigrants are considered reluctant to report crimes because police routinely ask for identification and are targeted in robberies because it is known they are unable to keep their cash in bank accounts, officials said.

"We've seen undocumented immigrants and their neighbors become the victims of robbery, assault and in one case even murder because thieves know they often carry large sums of cash," Mayor John DeStefano said last month.

"By eliminating this barrier to banking services, we expect to make New Haven safe for all of its residents," he added.

New Haven's approach is unusual, coming at a time when illegal immigrants in much of the rest of the United States are facing a crackdowns and raids.

A small number of anti-immigration protestors rallied against the new scheme when it was approved last month, according to local reports.