http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/n ... 784924.htm

Posted on Wed, Oct. 18, 2006

MECKLENBURG COUNTY BOARD


Request made to use sheriff's system to screen program participants
CARRIE LEVINE
clevine@charlotteobserver.com

Mecklenburg County commissioners Tuesday asked the sheriff to check the immigration status of participants in the county's DWI treatment court and determine whether the program is serving illegal immigrants.

Board members also unanimously asked County Manager Harry Jones to investigate the issue, together with an advisory group of city, county and criminal justice officials, and report back to the board.

"No one should be turning a blind eye to it," said Commissioner Dan Bishop.

Bishop, a Republican, put the issue on Tuesday's agenda in the wake of an Observer story earlier this month. The story said the court is accepting illegal immigrants, and some may be avoiding deportation because of it.

Robert Guy, who heads North Carolina's probation program, said probation officers have overheard Mecklenburg's DWI treatment court officials talk about sending suspected illegal immigrants to treatment centers, so they don't go to jail and have their immigration status checked.

In a memo to board members distributed at Tuesday's meeting, Jones said Guy believes there are "a disproportionate number of undocumented individuals being given treatment instead of jail time."

Jones and Sheriff Jim Pendergraph said that since May 1, the sheriff's office has used a new enforcement system to check the residency status of foreign-born people brought to the jail. Pendergraph said the jail is now processing 20 to 25 illegal immigrants per day, and the program should ensure illegal immigrants aren't sent to the DWI treatment court.

Deputy County Attorney Sandra Bisanar and Pendergraph said the sheriff has checked five DWI treatment court participants who were arrested before May 1, and found them to be illegal immigrants.

Board members said they want to know if other illegal immigrants arrested before the sheriff began the program are receiving treatment through the court.

The DWI treatment court is an intense, 12-month voluntary program for people convicted of drunken driving at least twice. It requires substance abuse treatment, drug testing and frequent meetings with a judge, probation officer and case coordinator. The court has won national recognition, and has been cited as a model.

The county provided roughly $100,000 to the court this year.

The DWI treatment court is part of the drug treatment court program. Jones said probation officers are also raising questions about differences between Mecklenburg's program and programs in other counties. Mecklenburg relies more heavily on case managers, and uses them to both screen participants and recommend treatment placement.