Thread: IMMIGRATION: Feds to review inmate program 287g

IMMIGRATION: Feds to review inmate program

BY DAVID OLSON The Press Enterprise STAFF WRITER
dolson@pe.com
Published: 15 October 2012 05:18 PM

Federal immigration authorities are reviewing whether to continue a program that trains local law-enforcement officials in Riverside and San Bernardino counties to screen jail inmates for their immigration status.

The counties are among 62 jurisdictions nationwide that take part in the program, called 287g. Local officials ask some inmates about their birthplace and other information that could indicate illegal status.

Those suspected of being in the country illegally are referred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents for further questioning. Los Angeles and Orange counties also have agreements with ICE.

San Bernardino County’s three-year agreement with ICE was scheduled to end next month. That agreement and the 49 others that would have lapsed by Dec. 31 were extended only until the end of the year while ICE reviews the program.

Riverside County has an agreement with ICE until July 2013 and that will continue. But ICE has the right to pull out of the agreement at any time.

ICE’s fiscal 2013 budget contains a $17-million cut in 287g funding, and that is leading ICE to review the program and each of its agreements, ICE said in a statement.

ICE said another program that identifies illegal-immigrant inmates, Secure Communities, “is more consistent, efficient and cost-effective in identifying and removing criminal and other priority aliens.”

Under Secure Communities, the fingerprints of all inmates are checked with a federal database. Under 287g, only some inmates are interviewed. In addition, Secure Communities is in more than 3,000 jurisdictions.

But Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies for the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Immigration Studies, which favors greater restrictions on immigration, said 287g complements Secure Communities and should not be replaced by it.

Under Secure Communities, only inmates whose fingerprints are in a federal immigration database are flagged. But Vaughan said about half of inmates are not in the database, she said.

“Without 287g, there would be a lot of people getting released who would fly under the radar,” she said.

Emilio Amaya, executive director of the San Bernardino Community Service Center, said he hopes the review of 287g leads to the program’s demise.

Many undocumented immigrants deported under the program commit relatively minor crimes, and the government should focus its resources on identifying hard-core criminals, he said.

In addition, Amaya said the program leads to racial profiling, because Latinos are singled out for questioning. ICE said allegations of racial profiling are investigated, and individuals or departments that engage in profiling can have their immigration authorities rescinded.

IMMIGRATION: Feds to review inmate program | Breaking News | PE.com - Press-Enterprise

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