Thread: Carpentersville Tonight's immigration debate:Police training

http://www.dailyherald.com/search/searc ... ?id=256495

Tonight's immigration debate: Police training
Village officials to seek federal funding for specialized training of officers

BY LARISSA CHINWAH
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Carpentersville trustees tonight will again address immigration and the federal government, making it three months in a row an immigration-related topic will make the village board agenda.

This time, they may seek federal funding for specialized training of some police officers.

But the timing and purpose of the proposed resolution has some village officials scratching their heads.

At a November village board meeting, trustees sent a resolution demanding the president and federal government enact immigration law enforcement and reform.

Now, the village is asking the federal government to foot the bill for Section 287 (g) training, which it already provides.

"This resolution is basically meaningless because the federal government already funds it," village President Bill Sarto said. "We have not applied to be admitted into the system. It is kind of like putting the cart before the horse."

Still, Sarto said he would support the resolution.

"It doesn't hurt to let them know that we want funding," Sarto said.

Although the resolution is immigration-related, it is not linked to the ordinance that would crack down on illegal immigrants, said Trustee Judy Sigwalt, a co-sponsor of the crackdown ordinance, now in limbo.

Sigwalt said the idea of the resolution seeking funding for training is "to keep the federal government on its toes."

"If nothing else, this lets the federal government know that we're not backing off on anything that pertains to helping communities deal with illegal immigration," Sigwalt said. "We cannot become complacent now and become silent."

But Trustee Jim Frost said sending another resolution to Washington could do more harm than good.

"It seems to me that trying to tell the federal government what to do is not in the best interest of anybody," Frost said. "We do not want to pester people in Washington with sending another letter."

The voluntary Section 287 (g) program was created in 1996 as an amendment to the Immigration and Naturalization Act. The program enables local communities and states to contract with the federal government to enforce immigration laws, said Michael Gilhooly, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman.

Gilhooly said Immigration and Customs Enforcement trains eligible officers for more than five weeks and designs a program that authorizes local law enforcement officers to identify, process and detain immigration offenders they encounter during their regular, daily law-enforcement activity.

While more than 30 agencies across the country are involved in training, Gilhooly said no communities in Illinois are actively participating in the program.

Carpentersville Police Chief David Neumann said he is researching the requirements for joining the program.

"We already work with ICE already, with roundups and such," said Neumann, who said his requests for information were not yet fulfilled. "We have had more than 40 over the year. The 287 (g) training will enhance what we already have; it will strengthen the relationship with ICE."

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/cour ... S1.article

C'ville seeking police training on immigration
Urges federal funding OK: To train officers to assist feds on enforcement efforts

December 6, 2006
BY JEANNE HOVANEC Staff Writer
CARPENTERSVILLE -- The village board continued its efforts to keep the federal government accountable Tuesday night as it approved another immigration-related resolution to be sent to legislators.

At the heels of approving a resolution two weeks ago that asks the government to immediately take actions to "effect comprehensive, meaningful and practical immigration reform and law enforcement," the board approved a measure that would request federal funding for Section 287(g) training and that it be made available to the village's police department.

The training initiative is designed to multiply the forces of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, and enhance cooperation and communication with state and local law enforcement.

ICE is working with 30 agencies in the United States to design training courses that focus on immigration law, civil rights, intercultural relations and racial profiling. After completing the courses, officers become accredited and receive special authorities regarding immigration violators and access to ICE resources, such as a database that contains information on 100 million aliens.

According to its Web site, ICE provides the instruction and materials for the training, but the municipalities are required to continue to pay of officers' salaries in addition to the costs of needed software and possible travel expenses.

Since Carpentersville already pays for its officers' salaries, Village Manager Craig Anderson said the point of the resolution was to encourage the federal government to continue funding the program.

"In order to keep them (officers) doing a good job, they need the tools," said Village Trustee Judy Sigwalt. "Our job is to lobby legislators and let them know our needs on the local level."

The resolution passed overwhelming with only Trustee Linda Ramirez-Sliwinski voting against it. She called the training "just more racism" and said that, according to her numbers, three of the seven gangs in the village were Latino gangs.

"That is not a majority of the problem, that is a minority" she said. "Where is crime running rampant?"

Village President Bill Sarto referred to the program as a "gimmick," although he later voted for the resolution because he said he would if Police Chief David Neumann thought the training would be beneficial for the village.

Although Neumann said he has not yet applied to ICE for the program, he did say he has asked for the application packet.

Neumann said the police department has room in its training budget to cover the costs. He said if chosen to participate in the program, the department would send two to four officers to the training. After accreditation, the officers would continue to fulfill village duties in addition to working under a limited basis with ICE supervision.

Ramirez-Sliwinski asked Neumann if those officers working under ICE supervision would incur overtime pay, which would be an added expense to the village. But Neumann said he could not project how much overtime would be created, if any.

Trustee Ed Ritter considered possible overtime pay as a reasonable cost to give the officers additional methods to do their jobs.

"They need to handle the jobs they have been given," he said. "This is one more tool to go after the criminals."

The resolution passed overwhelming with only Trustee Linda Ramirez-Sliwinski voting against it. She called the training "just more racism" and said that, according to her numbers, three of the seven gangs in the village were Latino gangs.

Well, isn't that something to brag about or deny. Almost half of the gangs are Latino. Law enforcement has now become racism in the eyes of Linda what's her name. Who elected this woman?

Dixie

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/loca ... thwest-hed

Police to be trained by U.S. immigration

George Houde
Published December 7, 2006


CARPENTERSVILLE -- Carpentersville trustees voted to pursue immigration enforcement training for several police officers under a federal program provided by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

Several trustees said it will be used to curb crime by illegal immigrants.


The training will be free for what Police Chief David Neumann said will be two to four officers whom he expects to be selected from a pool of volunteers. The officers will act as an extension of federal immigration agents and be supervised by an agent, Neumann said.

The resolution, approved 5-1 at Tuesday's board meeting, requests additional funding for computer software and other equipment. The software would give police access to the federal government's immigration database, Trustee Judy Sigwalt said.

The resolution provoked arguments from Trustee Linda Ramirez Sliwinski, the lone dissenter. She said the resolution was another effort by Sigwalt and Trustee Paul Humpfer to help pass an ordinance aimed at cracking down on illegal immigrants.

That proposal, now tabled, has provoked bitter debate and demonstrations since it was introduced by Sigwalt and Humpfer in October. The village's population is an estimated 40 percent Hispanic.

"This is just a ploy by two trustees to get the immigration [ordinance] passed," Ramirez Sliwinski. "This is just more racism."

Sigwalt said the training would help combat crime.

"It's another tool for our Police Department to fight crime and clean up our streets," she said.