Thread: Burlington County officers may be trained to find illegals

Burlington County Times

Local officers may be trained to find illegals

By DAVID LEVINSKY
Burlington County Times

MOUNT HOLLY — The Burlington County sheriff is researching the possibility of deputizing sheriff's officers and corrections officers for immigration enforcement duties.

Sheriff Jean Stanfield said she is collecting information about requirements and training for a U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement program to decide if it makes sense for those officers to participate.

The program allows the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to permit designated state and local officers to enforce immigration law, such as by reviewing databases to determine whether an individual is an illegal alien and eligible for deportation.

Before being deputized, officers must take five weeks of training.

Nationwide, a total of 26 law enforcement agencies and correctional institutions have joined the program since 2002, said Michael Gilhooly, spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

No New Jersey law enforcement or corrections agencies are included, but officials in Morristown, Morris County, have taken initial steps to permit local police there to participate.

As part of her research, Stanfield met Monday with Burlington County Detentions Warden Juel E. Cole to discuss the federal program and existing jail protocols concerning suspected illegal immigrants.

Cole said processing at the Burlington County Jail in Mount Holly and the Minimum Security Facility in Pemberton Township involves asking each inmate for their name, address and Social Security number.

He said immigration officials are notified about any inmate without a verifiable Social Security number. “That's a big red flag if someone doesn't have a Social Security number,â€

Freeholders OK immigration-enforcement proposal

By MIKE MATHIS
Burlington County Times
Sep 12, 2007
MOUNT HOLLY — The Burlington County Board of Freeholders today approved a proposal by the county sheriff to deputize sheriff’s officers and corrections officers for immigration enforcement duties.

County Sheriff Jean Stanfield’s and county jail warden Juel Cole said implementing the plan would allow their officers to investigate whether an inmate is an illegal alien and, if so, hold the person on a federal detainer without bail.

The detainer would remain in place until a defendant’s case is adjudicated, and the defendant would then be turned over to federal authorities for deportation.

At present, getting a federal detainer through the U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement agency to hold a defendant could take up to 24 hours, during which time the inmate could be released on bail.

“If someone posts the bail, we have to let them go,â€