Study: Before task force, few illegal immigrants in county jail


Saturday, March 1, 2008 3:45 PM CST

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - A new study shows fewer than 2 percent of those booked at the Washington County jail in September were in the country illegally, but that's before northwest Arkansas police agencies began enforcing federal immigration laws.

Brad Myrstol, an associate professor of sociology and criminal justice at the University of Arkansas, said the findings were significant as some attribute a rise in crime to illegal immigration. Myrstol held his study on behalf of the Washington County Sheriff's Office, which asked him to study drug and alcohol use among inmates.

"We see a lot of references to immigrant crime without a lot of data. The perception of immigrant crime is largely a social and media creation, even a political creation," Myrstol said. Studies show immigrant communities tend to have less crime than the general population, he said.

However, Washington County Chief Deputy Jay Cantrell said the study figures might be skewed, as the 139 interviewed during two weeks in September may have been dishonest.

"That number seems a little low," Cantrell said.

In October, officials announced 19 trained officers from the Rogers and Springdale police departments and the Benton and Washington county sheriff's offices would begin working on a newly formed immigration task force with agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The agreement allows the officers to check the immigration status of the people they arrest and begin deportation proceedings against those in the country illegally.

The study also found nearly a quarter of those arrested tested positive for methamphetamine in a drug screening. Researchers administered a voluntary and anonymous drug test to about 80 percent of the people they interviewed.

That rate of methamphetamine use is higher than in those arrested in comparable cities such as Tulsa, Okla., Oklahoma City and Birmingham, Ala., according to the study.

Cantrell said knowing so many of those arrested at the jail have used methamphetamine within the last three to five days might lead to some supplemental training among detention officers to recognize the effects of methamphetamine withdrawal.

"This study helps us to determine where we need to devote more resources," Cantrell said.

Cantrell said the sheriff's office would like to hold a follow-up investigation on the $29,900 study in the future.

Information from: The Morning News, http://www.nwaonline.net/

A service of the Associated Press(AP)
http://www.pbcommercial.com/articles/20 ... 4s4m00.txt