Federal immigration enforcement program’s launch is set for Montgomery

By Michael Laris and Shankar Vedantam,
Tuesday, May 3, 7:42 PM

Montgomery officials are getting a civics lesson in the power of the federal government: A controversial federal immigration enforcement program will launch in the county this fall, whether local officials like it or not.

In a terse letter, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official told Montgomery’s corrections director that the program, called Secure Communities, is coming soon. As part of the program, fingerprint data from local law enforcement are sent to federal immigration officials.

“This letter is to notify you that the activation date for Montgomery County is scheduled for Tuesday, September 27, 2011,â€