DeGrange targets illegal immigrant inmates
Hike in deportations could save state money
By LIAM FARRELL
Published 02/22/10

An Anne Arundel County state senator is continuing his efforts to better identify illegal immigrants in the state's prison system, hoping an increased number of deportations could save Maryland money.


Sen. Ed DeGrange, D-Glen Burnie, has proposed legislation to require the state Division of Parole and Probation to contact the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency if a pre-sentence investigation report indicates someone has an unlawful immigration status.

The department would forward to ICE the individual's name, any information about his immigration status and a summary of the case facts. If none of that information was collected in a pre-sentence investigation, the state Division of Corrections would have to put it in a case record for an inmate and forward it to ICE.

DeGrange said that could be a way for the state to identify illegal immigrants before they enter a state prison and use Maryland's scarce resources.

"The main issue was to catch them on the front end," he said. "It has the potential to have quite a bit of savings. Every dollar we can save is certainly a benefit."

According to a fiscal analysis, Maryland's Department of Legislative Services said the requirements of the bill can be handled within the current budget.

Under current law, when an inmate is sentenced to the Division of Corrections, a record is compiled that includes a description, photograph, family history, any previous records, a factual case summary, and the results of physical and other examinations. The Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services attempts to identify citizenship status during the intake process.

U.S. Census data estimate that there are between 225,000 and 275,000 undocumented residents in Maryland, but there is no reliable data about how many are arrested and detained, according to the Department of Legislative Services. If an illegal immigrant goes through a trial and receives a sentence, he is in the custody of the sentencing jurisdiction until release.

During 2008, the Department of Corrections released 157 foreign-born inmates, with 123 taken into custody by ICE.

The issue first came to the fore in the Senate last year during a floor debate about a recent law allowing inmates upon release to get a type of identification card that can be used as a secondary form of identification at the Motor Vehicle Administration.

Following that discussion, DeGrange, with the support of Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., D-Calvert, filed a bill similar to this year's proposal. But it received only a committee hearing and no further action was taken.

At this point there is no House version of the bill.

Immigration has been a particularly difficult issue for the General Assembly to deal with, despite emotional hearings every session in which Republicans and Democrats spar over how much should be done to identify illegal immigrants in Maryland.

Other legislation this year includes proposals to require that people have proof of lawful presence before they get any public benefits, and require use of a federal computer program to prevent the employment of undocumented workers.

Last year's session was almost submarined by an ugly eleventh-hour compromise on requiring proof of legal presence for driver's licenses, an issue brought up only because the federal government had threatened that Maryland licenses could no longer be valid for air travel.

Some legislators, such as House Speaker Michael E. Busch, D-Annapolis, also question how much responsibility the General Assembly has for immigration policies, when the federal government is charged with most of the oversight.

Still, DeGrange said there was little opposition to his bill at a hearing earlier this month. He hopes the state takes another step to get a handle on who is in its prison population.

"I still think it is important," he said. "I believe it is just common sense."


http://www.hometownannapolis.com/news/t ... mates.html