August 5, 2007
Pinal sheriff seeks federal training on immigration law
Christian Richardson, Tribune
Pinal County Sheriff Chris Vasquez has asked federal officials to start training his staff on the finer points of immigration law, helping deputies determine who should and shouldn’t be in the United States.

The tutelage scheduled for October in Florence will better prepare deputies and jailers to follow Proposition 100, a voter-approved measure that says illegal immigrants arrested for certain felonies cannot be released on bond, Vasquez said. And it will also let deputies making arrests for any crime hold illegal immigrants for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents for deportation proceedings.

Immigration activists expressed concern about the training and empowerment of local officers to interpret federal law.

“I just don’t think it’s the right place to be enforcing the federal laws,â€