More Oklahoma counties using federal immigration fingerprint program


In the past month, eleven Oklahoma counties have signed on to the Secure Communities immigration enforcement program. In all, 48 Oklahoma jurisdictions send fingerprint data to be compared against immigration databases.


BY VALLERY BROWN
Published: June 3, 2011

More than a dozen Oklahoma jails have recently started using fingerprints to check immigration status, adding to the growing number of jails trying to weed illegal immigrants out of their system.

In the past month, Adair, Delaware, Mayes, Noble, Ottawa, Choctaw, Cotton, Haskell, Jefferson, Le Flore and Marshall counties have signed up to use the Secure Communities program. In all, 48 Oklahoma jurisdictions send fingerprint information to be compared against the federal immigration databases.

Nationwide, 1,331 jurisdictions in 42 states are a part of the program, records show.

What’s the reaction?

Many Oklahoma officials said Secure Communities doesn’t add to their workload, and helps clear bed space by removing undocumented immigrants from oftentimes overcrowded jails.

However, Secure Communities has been criticized by think tanks and research organizations like the Immigration Policy Institute, the Migration Policy Institute and the Urban Institute for casting a broad net and not focusing on what federal officials have deemed top-priority, criminal offenders like rapists, murderers and other felons.

They also criticize the program for having little oversight and the inability of local agencies to opt out of the program.

Noble County jail administrator Lee Mallin said the few undocumented immigrants booked into the 48-bed jail are usually traveling Interstate 35.

“Things are running the way they always have,â€