Did ICE chief oversell Arpaio jail program?

The head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement recently defended a federal program that lets officials from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office screen people booked into the jail for immigration violations.

John Morton, the assistant secretary for ICE, said that 69 percent of the people ICE received through the program, known as 287(g), are for Level 1 and Level 2 offenses. Morton characterized Level 1 and Level 2 offenses as "serious felonies" such as drug trafficking, assaults and rape.

An analysis of ICE statistics, however, shows Morton was incorrect in suggesting that the majority of offenses alleged were "serious felonies." Most of the offenses were of the Level 2 type. Morton has repeatedly emphasized that the priority of the 287(g) program is to catch and deport illegal immigrants who commit serious crimes, although the program does not ignore immigration violators who haven't committed crimes.

Morton made the comments during a meeting in January with reporters and editors at The Arizona Republic.

Morton was responding to a question regarding a large protest early that week . Demonstrators called on the Department of Homeland Security to terminate the program with MCSO. The protesters alleged that some Valley police officers are arresting Latinos for minor crimes in order to check their immigration status during the booking process.

The ICE statistics, released following a request by The Republic, show that 68.7 percent of the 2,620 suspected illegal immigrants referred to ICE by MCSO jail officials between Oct. 1, 2009, and Jan. 19, 2010, were indeed for people who allegedly committed Level 1 and Level 2 offenses. But most fell in the Level 2 category, not Level 1. Level 1 includes crimes such as drug trafficking, rape, homicide and kidnapping. Level 2 offenses include less serious crimes such as bad checks, curfew, disorderly conduct, DUI, trespassing, family offenses, liquor laws and money laundering. (ICE says it did not start tracking referrals by level of criminality until last October.)

The ICE statistics show that 17.3 percent of the 2,620 suspected illegal immigrants referred to ICE fell into the Level 1 category while 51.4 percent fell into the Level 2 category.

The statistics also show that another 9.4 percent fell into the Level 3 category, which includes minor offenses such as traffic violations, immigration violations, and property crimes.

The statistics also show that the MCSO 287(g) program catches fewer Level 1 offenders than the national average. At least 38 other sheriff's offices and state correctional departments also participate in the 287(g) program with ICE.

Nationally, 22.3 percent of the 14,748 suspected illegal immigrants referred to ICE were Level 1 offenders, compared to MCSO's 17.3 percent .

The statistics also show that MCSO refers far more people to ICE encountered solely for immigration violations and no other crimes than the national average, 14 percent compared with 4.8 percent nationally.

--Daniel Gonzalez



Friday, February 12, 2010 at 11:12 AM


http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/LiveWire/73771