Thread: ICE launches program to strengthen immigration enforcement WSO-287g

I.C.E. News Releases

ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL

05/06/2019

ICE launches program to strengthen immigration enforcement

LARGO, Fla. – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced today the creation of a new collaborative program intended for local law-enforcement that wish to honor immigration detainers but are prohibited due to state and local policies that limit cooperation with the agency.

The Warrant Service Officer (WSO) program was launched during a signing ceremony with Lieutenant Governor of Florida Jeanette Núñez, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, National Sheriffs’ Association Executive Director Jonathan Thompson and ICE Deputy Executive Associate Director for Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) David Marin. The effort, also intended for rural jurisdictions that lack the budget and personnel resources to become 287(g) partners, has gained interest from several other local law-enforcement agencies, which also attended the ceremony, and additional signings are expected soon.

“Policies that limit cooperation with ICE undermine public safety, prevent the agency from executing its federally mandated mission and increase the risks for officers forced to make at-large arrests in unsecure locations,” said Acting ICE Director Matthew Albence. “The WSO program will protect communities from criminal aliens who threaten vulnerable populations with violence, drugs and gang activity by allowing partner jurisdictions the flexibility to make immigration arrests in their jail or correctional facility.”

Once a WSO officer serves an administrative warrant and executes an arrest on behalf of ICE, the agency has 48 hours to conduct a transfer of custody unless an Intergovernmental Service Agreement exists. If ICE does not take the alien into custody within 48 hours, the individual must be released.

WSO officers will only make arrests within the confines of the jail at which they work, and ICE will still issue immigration detainers with partner jurisdictions.

The WSO derives its authority from section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, but unlike the 287(g) program, WSO officers will not question individuals about their citizenship, alienage or removability, nor will they process aliens who are unlawfully present in the United States.

The new procedure was prompted by requests from the National Sheriffs’ Association and the Major County Sheriffs of America, which asked for a program limited in scope that would allow jurisdictions prohibited from honoring immigration detainers to cooperate with ICE.

“This program gives sheriffs the legal support to help federal law enforcement keep dangerous criminal illegal aliens out of their communities," said National Sheriffs' Association Executive Director Jonathan Thompson. "It will not only decrease sheriff's liability but will give them the proper training to enforce the law."

Once a jurisdiction signs a WSO Memorandum of Agreement, the local law-enforcement agency will nominate officers to receive training from ICE certified instructors to perform WSO functions. ICE will conduct a background investigation on all nominated candidates, who will receive federal credentials that reflect their authority once training is completed. The WSO process will be supervised and directed by ICE, and the cost of travel and officer pay associated with training will be funded by the participating jurisdiction.

Additionally, the four-week immigration officer training module at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Charleston, South Carolina, necessary for 287(g) partners has been modified for the WSO program.

Instead, WSO candidates will receive one day of training from ICE personnel at a local training site. Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO), also a Basic Ordering Agreement partner, is the first jurisdiction to formally become a WSO participant.

“People in our country illegally who commit crimes must not be released back into our communities where they harm others,” Gualtieri said. “The Warrant Service Officer program allows sheriffs to lawfully help ICE keep criminal illegal aliens in jail and off the street by serving ICE arrest warrants. The WSO program helps enforce the rule of law and keeps our communities safe.”

For some jurisdictions restricted by local policies that prohibit the recognition of immigration detainers, the WSO program would be the most appropriate initiative that allows for enhanced cooperation with ICE. For example, the Basic Ordering Agreement, which was launched in January 2018, was intended for jurisdictions that honored immigration detainers but sought additional legal defense from potential lawsuits. Jurisdictions interested in participating in the WSO program should contact their local ICE ERO field office.

Last Reviewed/Updated: 05/06/2019

https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ic...on-enforcement

ICE creates 'most wanted' list to help track down criminal immigrants

I.C.E has all kinds of "lists"...at welfare office, at the Registrar of Voters Office, at Department of Motor Vehicles, at HUD, at courts, at Social Security, at IRS office, at Medicaid office, at our taxpayer funded schools.

HOW MANY MORE DAMN "LISTS" DO YOU NEED!!! DEPORT THE WHOLE FAMILY AND TURN THEM AWAY AT OUR BORDER!

THIS IS A JOKE ON YOU TRUMP AND PENCE!!

Originally Posted by JohnDoe2

ICE creates 'most wanted' list to help track down criminal immigrants

Just now making a "most wanted" list...

If that just doesn't rip the button off your shirt, I don't know what does.

News flash: A little more piss on what is now a raging fire isn't going to make that much difference. We need to be actively seeking out all illegal aliens for deportation, not just those that commit a noteworthy crime.

Sheriff launches training program enabling Pinellas jail to hold immigration detainees

The program aimed at helping local law enforcement agencies cooperate with federal immigration authorities comes days after the Florida Legislature passed a contentious bill banning sanctuary cities.


By Kathryn Varn and Tony Marrero
Published Earlier Today
Updated Earlier Today

LARGO — Less than a week after state lawmakers passed a bill to ban so-called sanctuary cities, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri and 10 other Florida sheriffs on Monday signed agreements designed to help them legally comply with requests from federal authorities to hold undocumented immigrants in local jails.

The warrant service officer agreement, the first of its kind in the United States, trains and certifies sheriff's deputies to serve federal immigration warrants on jail inmates at the request of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The agreement is yet another attempt at a legal workaround so sheriffs can comply with these so-called detainer requests, called unconstitutional by critics and some courts.

Last week's passage of SB 168 by the Florida House and Senate raises the stakes for sheriffs by essentially making it a requirement that they honor a detainer. Gov. Ron DeSantis, who campaigned as an immigration hardliner, is expected to sign the bill.

Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez, appearing with the 11 Florida sheriffs at a news conference Monday, encouraged other sheriffs to take part.

Said Gualtieri, "While immigration is the responsibility of the federal government, public safety is the responsibility of all law enforcement officers.

ICE issues detainer requests when immigration officials have probable cause to believe an individual can be deported under federal immigration law. Under current federal law, however, local law enforcement officials don't have the authority to serve federal warrants.

With their new status as warrant service officers, deputies can honor detainer requests "in an unequivocal, lawful way," Gualtieri said.

Gualtieri called the program a better option for sheriffs than two other programs that enable local law enforcement officials to legally serve federal warrants.

One is the 287g program, which deputizes state and local law enforcement officers so they conduct immigration investigations, interviewingg people about their immigration status and make arrests for violation of immigration law. The program is costly, requiring four weeks of training in South Carolina, and unfeasible for many agencies.

Under the other option, known as the basic ordering agreement, ICE sends jail operators a booking form that transfers custody of detainees from the local jail to federal immigration authorities. The jail operator is paid up to $50 to hold the inmate for up to 48 hours. The program is working well for the roughly 30 sheriffs who have signed the agreements, according to Gualtieri.

The new warrant service officer program requires just eight hours of training, Gualtieri said. He expects to train and certify about 40 deputies at his agency so certified personnel will be working in the jail at all times.

Gualtieri said his agency will continue to take part in both the basic ordering agreement and warrant service office programs. The Pasco and Hernando sheriffs' offices are currently among five in Florida participating in the 287g agreements. Still, representatives signed on Monday to the warrant service officer agreements, too.

Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister has declined to take part in the programs.

In a statement Monday, Chronister said, "While this may be an appropriate or necessary solution for other jurisdictions, I believe our participation in immigration enforcement programs such as these could discourage victims from coming forward which goes against our purpose.”

Monday's announcement is the latest development in a years-old debate on detainers.

In 2014, the first federal court rulings found that the ICE requests did not give jail operators legal authority to hold inmates after their local charges were resolved. Doing so, the courts found, violated the Fourth Amendment protection against illegal search and seizure.

To provide legal cover, Gualtieri helped create the basic ordering agreement protocol, and the warrant service officer program, representing national law enforcement groups.

Still, immigrant advocates say the new schemes don't resolve another legal flaw: Under current law, arrest warrants allowing ICE to take custody do not have to be reviewed by a judge.

In addition, some question the level of training that deputies would receive and whether local governments could be liable if the program were challenged. Class action lawsuits are pending in other parts of the country.

What’s more, law-abiding immigrants and low-level offenders end up in the detainer program, said Ana Lamb of the League of United Latin American Citizens in Pinellas.

"These are good people, parents who go to work and go to school, " Lamb said.

Detainer requests are issued for any immigrant facing deportation orders as well as for those with criminal records, said David Marin, deputy executive associate director for ICE.

"When that person gets arrested for a crime and we're notified of that," Marin said, "we have to take action."

http://www.tampabay.com/news/publics...iner-20190506/