Sheriff Requests Grant For Immigration Enforcement

POSTED: 12:58 pm EDT April 2, 2008


PICKEN COUNTY, S.C. -- The Pickens County Sheriff's Office is hoping that a grant will give deputies the skills needed to better enforce immigration policies.

The agency is waiting to hear back from the Department of Homeland Security. Sheriff David Stone said that over the past seven months, his agency has arrested 42 illegal immigrants who are suspected of other crimes, 11 of whom have since been deported.

Stone said he's working with the sheriff's offices in Anderson and Oconee counties to apply for a federal grant that would train their deputies in immigration enforcement.

He said it's important for agencies to pool their resources because as part of this federal program counties would have to incarcerate these individuals until they're turned over to federal authorities. Right now, many detention centers are already overcrowded.

Stone said his deputies could use the special training to determine if a suspect is an illegal immigrant.

Stone said, "Our officers will be better trained to interrogate these individuals and find out if they are, because a lot of times (suspected illegal immigrants) won't say anything if they come in."

The federal training would be included in what's known as a 287-G grant.

Currently, the York County Sheriff's Office is the only agency in South Carolina that has received the special training.

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