Thread: Danbury, CT and ICE may team up

Danbury, ICE may team up
City looks at enrolling in program to let law enforcement agencies work with immigration officials
By Marietta Homayonpour STAFF WRITER
Article Last Updated: 11/26/2007 06:27:35 AM EST

DANBURY -- The controversial issue of closer ties between local law enforcement and federal immigration officials is still being studied by the city, and a report will likely be presented to the Common Council in January.

Michael McLachlan, chief of staff for Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, said the mayor, the chief of police and the city's corporation counsel are each putting together reports on the impact of taking part in ACCESS -- a law enforcement partnership program offered by the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency.

ACCESS stands for Agreements of Cooperation in Communities to Enhance Safety and Security. The program was created by ICE in late summer to allow local law enforcement agencies to team with the federal agency on a dozen specific crime areas, including document fraud, child exploitation and human trafficking.

But one part of ACCESS -- called 287(g) -- has existed for several years. That component cross-designates local police officers to enforce immigration law as authorized through section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

The three studies by Danbury officials on whether to take part in the ICE program, McLachlan said, are "due diligence" in preparation for a report to the Common Council. The studies will likely be condensed into one report.

"I anticipate it will be ready by the January meeting," McLachlan said, although he added that it's possible the report could be discussed at the December meeting.

McLachlan also anticipates that once the council gets the report, the members will likely form an ad hoc subcommittee to study it.
In mid-September, 14 Republican Common Council members wrote to Danbury Mayor Boughton asking that the city study the possibility of taking part in ACCESS. The issue was on the Common Council's agenda for its October meeting and drew protest and support.

About 25 people protested against such cooperation in a demonstration outside City Hall on Oct. 2, the night of that month's council meeting. Inside the council chambers, people spoke for and against the move during public comments.

For several years, the issue of immigration has been a hot-button topic here, with groups strongly divided on how to deal with illegal immigrants.

Opponents of cooperation with ICE argued at the Common Council meeting in October that the move would result in a "witch hunt" and make immigrants fearful of reporting crimes. They also said such cooperation would put a further burden on an already understaffed Danbury Police Department.

Supporters, however, praised the council members who made the suggestion. They said a cooperative program was badly needed in the city, and some hoped the program would help crack down on business owners and landlords who are abetting illegal immigration.

Danbury Police Chief Al Baker said last week he's preparing his report on ACCESS after meeting here Oct. 19 with ICE agents, including the special agent in charge of the Boston area and a resident agent from New Haven.

"They went over the program and we got a pretty good idea of it," Baker said.

Baker said the city is already informally working with ICE, and participation in the program would formalize the cooperation. He stressed, however, if the city does take part in the program, the focus would be on criminals.

"We're not going to go down to Kennedy Park and check on immigration status," said Baker, referring to the Danbury park where many immigrants gather in the morning to seek jobs as day laborers. "We're not concerned with somebody's status."

He also said victims of crimes are not asked their immigration status and so should not be fearful of reporting crimes.

Baker said Danbury police "are interested in arresting criminals, whether legal or illegal. This (program) would provide an investigative resource on crimes involving the undocumented."

Those crimes would include activities like gangs, prostitution rings, and people who sell forged documents, he said.

Baker conceded his department is understaffed, with only 148 of 152 authorized positions filled and four retirements pending early next year. But if the city does take part in ACCESS, "we would not be training a large number of officers. It would be a limited number."

The number, Baker said, would probably be from one or two officers to four. Their training would take six weeks.

Danbury's Deputy Corporation Counsel Les Pinter said his office is looking into whether there is any legal prohibition from another authority -- such as the state of Connecticut -- that would prevent the city from entering the ACCESS program.

"We don't believe there are," he said.

Several years ago, Boughton wanted state police to be deputized for immigration enforcement, but the state police were not interested.

As of late September, according to information from ICE, 28 law enforcement entities in the U.S. were taking part in the 287(g) component of ACCESS, resulting in the identification of more than 22,000 illegal aliens, mostly in county jails.

Among the law enforcement groups participating are the Alabama State Police, the Colorado Department of Public Safety, the Massachusetts Department of Corrections, the Hudson City (N.H.) Police Department and the Prince William-Manassas Adult Detention Center in Virginia.

Among the dozen programs offered under ACCESS is the Document and Benefit Fraud Task Forces, which target groups threatening national security and public safety "by exploiting the immigration process thought fraud," according to ICE.

Another ACCESS program is Operation Community Shield, which targets "violent gangs." ICE says the agency uses "its broad authorities" to investigate "narcotics and human smuggling, money laundering and racketeering violations."

Even if the city decides to take part in ACCESS and ICE agrees, the partnership won't happen immediately. Baker said the acceptance and implementation of the cooperative program would take between nine months and a year.

Contact Marietta Homayonpour at mhomayonpour@newstimes.com or at (203) 731-3336.
http://www.newstimes.com/ci_7560451

We're not going to go down to Kennedy Park and check on immigration status," said Baker, referring to the Danbury park where many immigrants gather in the morning to seek jobs as day laborers. "We're not concerned with somebody's status."
He also said victims of crimes are not asked their immigration status and so should not be fearful of reporting crimes.









I hope the day comes soon when we will no longer see these types of apologetic, concilliatory, comments being added on everytime someone in authority discusses plans to crack down on IAs.

The fact of the matter is that IAs have no right to be in this country and no one owes them any apologies or reassurances for deciding to do something about it.

It's as simple as that.

Originally Posted by azwreath

We're not going to go down to Kennedy Park and check on immigration status," said Baker, referring to the Danbury park where many immigrants gather in the morning to seek jobs as day laborers. "We're not concerned with somebody's status."
He also said victims of crimes are not asked their immigration status and so should not be fearful of reporting crimes.

I hope the day comes soon when we will no longer see these types of apologetic, concilliatory, comments being added on everytime someone in authority discusses plans to crack down on IAs.

The fact of the matter is that IAs have no right to be in this country and no one owes them any apologies or reassurances for deciding to do something about it.

It's as simple as that.

Very well said, azwreath. I agree completely. No assurance whatsoever should ever be given to illegal aliens that they will not encounter the full force of law.

Originally Posted by zeezil

Originally Posted by azwreath

We're not going to go down to Kennedy Park and check on immigration status," said Baker, referring to the Danbury park where many immigrants gather in the morning to seek jobs as day laborers. "We're not concerned with somebody's status."
He also said victims of crimes are not asked their immigration status and so should not be fearful of reporting crimes.

I hope the day comes soon when we will no longer see these types of apologetic, concilliatory, comments being added on everytime someone in authority discusses plans to crack down on IAs.

The fact of the matter is that IAs have no right to be in this country and no one owes them any apologies or reassurances for deciding to do something about it.

It's as simple as that.

Very well said, azwreath. I agree completely. No assurance whatsoever should ever be given to illegal aliens that they will not encounter the full force of law.

Thanks Zeezil. It's just so maddening every time I see this kind of thing in print........grrrrrrr.