Deportation's wide net

Federal program aimed at removing violent felons from U.S. is ensnaring ‘noncriminals,' increasing tension between law enforcement, immigrants

By MARTIN ESPINOZA & JULIE JOHNSON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Sunday, April 10, 2011 at 3:00 a.m.
Last Modified: Saturday, April 9, 2011 at 11:00 p.m.

(Editor's note: This is the first part of a two-day series on the impact of the federal government's Secure Communities program. Monday: Immigration holds at Sonoma County Jail.)

The federal program is portrayed as a high-tech tool for quickly identifying and ultimately deporting dangerous “criminal aliensâ€