Thread: Council Votes In Favor Of Herndon Police ICE Training

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Council Votes In Favor Of Herndon Police ICE Training
Meeting Open To Public

POSTED: 6:08 pm EDT September 26, 2006
UPDATED: 12:21 am EDT September 27, 2006

HERNDON, Va. -- The town council in Herndon voted in favor of a proposal to give some of its police officers Immigration and Customs Enforcement training.

Herndon's Police Chief Toussaint Summers wants some of his officers to be enrolled in the agency's five-week "287(g)" program.

The training would give his officers the ability to begin detention and deportation procedures for any illegal immigrant arrested for a crime.

After a meeting Tuesday night, the council voted 6-1 in favor of the training. ICE would have to approve the training in order for the plan to move forward.

The meeting, which was open to the public, highlighted tension in the city's Latino community. Herndon has the highest proportion of foreign-born residents than any other locality in the Washington area, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Dozens spoke out on both sides of the issue.

Resident William Campenni used sketches showing the Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the Pentagon, saying that three of the hijackers stayed in Herndon the night before.

"We might have 184 of our neighbors still around today if somebody had stopped those people along the way and said, 'Wait a minute. Let's dig farther into this,'" Campenni said.

Other residents said they feel local police have all the power they need.

"It's unnecessary and it's also dangerous for people who might be accused of something or suspected of something and would have no recourse," said resident John Denoyer.

Summers' proposal comes at a time when major crime in Herndon has dropped sharply. In his presentation to the council, Summers said crimes such as murder, rape and robbery declined 26 percent between 2002 and 2005.

Residents said they do not want to be seen as anti-immigrants, but that they feel that the federal government has not come up with answers, so town council would have to decide whether to take matters into its own hands.

http://washingtontimes.com/metro/200609 ... -5018r.htm

Herndon mulls ICE training
By Keyonna Summers
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Published September 26, 2006

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The Herndon Town Council tonight is expected to discuss a proposal to seek federal immigration training that would allow local police to question and detain suspected illegal aliens.

Herndon Police Chief Toussaint E. Summers Jr. last week asked the council to team with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for the five-week training, which also would allow local officers to work with federal agents on immigration cases.

If approved, the chief expects trained immigration officers to be on the streets within four to six months.

"This program is geared toward felons -- those who wreak havoc in our community and those who have committed serious violent crimes but are not citizens of this country," Chief Summers said at a press conference Friday. "I think it would benefit everybody to get those folks out of our country as soon as we can."

The request comes as the town and Fairfax County face a lawsuit by seven county residents who say taxpayer money should not be used to partially fund a day-laborer center in town because it violates state and federal law by helping illegal aliens find work.

Documents recently obtained by Judicial Watch, the District-based public-interest law firm representing the residents, showed Herndon police requested information on the training in 2004, but did not follow through.

Chief Summers said Friday the country's heightened terrorism awareness after September 11 and requests by past and current town council members prompted the most recent request for training.

Virginia state law allows local law-enforcement officials to detain illegal aliens only if they are suspected of a crime, have been convicted of a felony or have been deported or left the United States and returned illegally.

Under the new training, local police would be able to detain illegals regardless of deportation status, and begin the initial paperwork for ICE to review when they pick up an alien who might be considered for deportation.

But the training would only allow local police to enforce federal laws against "criminal aliens who pose a threat to national security and public safety," Chief Summers said, meaning the training would have little effect on day laborers in Herndon.

"ICE currently is in the area, and you don't see ICE running over there now," the chief said. "We wouldn't have any more authority than ICE has now."

The training would include courses on document examination, cross-cultural communications and racial profiling, Chief Summers said.

He does not think it would hurt relations with Hispanics and other immigrants in the community.

"I think it actually will benefit and enhance the relationship because what we will hopefully do is move folks out of their midst that may be causing havoc in their communities," he said.

If local police depts really wanted to help protect citizens they would all sign up for this program - 287(g). If I recall, it costs around $400 per officer. With the war against terrorism it should be high priority.

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Originally Posted by jean

If local police depts really wanted to help protect citizens they would all sign up for this program - 287(g). If I recall, it costs around $400 per officer. With the war against terrorism it should be high priority.

The cost for the course has been waived.