Agency denies records on immigration enforcement
Agency denies records on immigration enforcement
By Morgan Lee
Monday, October 4, 2010 at 11:49 a.m.
A research center that monitors government performance on immigration enforcement says it is being stonewalled by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement.
ICE has denied a request for extensive enforcement data by the Transactional Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University (TRAC) until the nonprofit group can provide half of a $450,000 fee up-front. The nonprofit group says ICE has complied with similar request in the past -- without a six-figure fee.
Recent immigration-enforcement data published by TRAC has cast doubt on government efforts to target criminals, said Susan B. Long, a statistician and co-director of TRAC. Her group often provides data and analysis for the San Diego region.
"Lots of reforms have been announced, lots of promises have been made" about immigration enforcement, Long said. "You just can’t know what the reality on the ground is" without this information.
In their most recent request, Long and colleagues in May sought anonymous person-by-person data about arrests, detentions, charges filed and removals of illegal immigrants.
"For example, it’s really a core piece of information where arrests and apprehensions are taking place,â€
