Latinos in Salt Lake City are committing violent and drug crimes at a rate proportional to their population, while their involvement in identity-theft crime is significantly lower than the population, according to a report of crime statistics from five years of data in Utah's capital.

The debate over how much crime is committed by both documented and undocumented Latinos has been at the center of statewide debate since Utah's comprehensive immigration reform law, SB81, was proposed in 2008, and this is one of the first reports to analyze data. It shows, essentially, that Latinos commit crimes in the same proportion whites do.

Salt Lake City Police Chief Chris Burbank commissioned the Consortium for Police Leadership in Equity to understand the effects of SB81 and to see whether data and public perception justified his choice to not cross-deputize his officers as immigration agents. The consortium interviewed 96 whites, 54 documented Latinos, 49 undocumented Latinos and 118 Salt Lake City police officers -- about one-third of the force. The consortium found undocumented immigrants through local religious organizations and approached others at public places such as the Division of Motor Vehicles for the 30-minute oral interview.

The report acknowledges the sample size is relatively small, which has some SB81 supporters questioning its validity and its conclusion that SB81 was crafted out of fear and based on racism.

"You get what you go looking for," said Eli Cawley, chairman of the Utah Minuteman Project, which rallies against illegal immigration. "To think that a consortium of whatever nature would come out with an unbiased opinion is ridiculous, especially considering 'Sanctuary Burbank' commissioned it. I guess he got what he paid for."

But those on the other side of the politically charged issue of immigration say the report confirms what they've been saying for years.

"If you go to the jail and look at the population, why are all the white people there?" said Frank Cordova, president of the Centro Civico Mexicano. "The percentages and facts are there, and Chief Burbank of all people knows those things, which is why he never accepted SB81 [nor] did many of the other police chiefs. They know what's happening on the streets. It's not all Latinos."

Burbank has said he is worried about jeopardizing his department's relationship with the Latino community and undermining the general public's trust by allowing his officers to enforce immigration laws.

Both white and Latino respondents said they would stop reporting drug crime if officers were cross-deputized.

"It is much harder to police drug crime effectively if community members, regardless of race, are unwilling to report its occurrence," the report states.

Also, whites' perceived legitimacy of the department would drop if officers were cross-deputized, and such a drop "has the potential to harm the SLCPD's reputation and to impair the SLCPD's ability to police effectively amongst both white and Latino residents," the report states.

Officers, however, underestimated how well they were liked by undocumented Latinos, which was at about the same level as documented Latinos and whites. That assumption impacted those officers' prediction of the effects of SB81.

"The more an SLCPD officer denied the potential discriminatory impact of SB81, the more he or she underestimated the degree to which the police were liked by undocumented immigrants," the report stated, adding that such a disconnect "has the potential to cause a great deal of strain on police/community relations."