Report pans inmate screening program
Stephen Wall, Staff Writer
Posted: 04/05/2010 05:54:48 PM PDT

A nationwide program that allows local law enforcement agencies to perform some immigration duties has numerous shortcomings, according to a new report.

The San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department is one of about 70 communities participating in the 287(g) program, which allows local officials to screen jail inmates to see if they are in the country illegally.

The Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General issued a report last week, stating the program is poorly managed and supervised, lacks strict guidelines for implementation and fails to adequately train local officials about immigration law.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which partners with local agencies on the program, is not focusing its efforts on identifying criminal immigrants who pose the greatest risk to the public, the report says.

"The report only confirms what we have been saying all along: Counties and cities have no business enforcing immigration law," said Emilio Amaya, director of the San Bernardino Community Service Center, a nonprofit immigrant assistance organization.

"In San Bernardino and Riverside counties, most of the people we see going through the 287(g) process are not the hardcore criminals we should be investing our resources in," Amaya said.

ICE officials say the agency has made significant progress in addressing the issues raised in the report.

Since the inspector general's review was conducted, the
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the agency said it has taken steps to fulfill many of the report's recommendations.

"The Office of Inspector General report does not reflect the current 287(g) program," ICE said in a statement. "Since the audit was conducted, ICE has fundamentally reformed the 287(g) program, strengthening public safety and ensuring consistency in immigration enforcement across the country by prioritizing the arrest and detention of criminal aliens."

The San Bernardino County of Supervisors approved an agreement with ICE in 2005 and renewed it for another three years in November.

Under the program, nine sheriff's custody specialists trained by ICE screen inmates booked into county jails to determine their immigration status. The Sheriff's Department places a hold on inmates identified as illegal immigrants so they cannot be released from jail.

After serving their jail or prison sentence, the inmates are turned over to ICE for possible deportation.

Since 2006, the program has identified 9,461 foreign nationals in the county as potentially deportable, according to ICE.

Deputy Chief Bob Fonzi said he wasn't familiar with the details of the report. But he didn't believe many of the concerns apply to San Bernardino County.

"We don't do interior enforcement," Fonzi said. "We don't arrest or allow other police agencies in San Bernardino County to arrest someone on strictly an immigration violation. They must have committed some crime."

Supervisor Neil Derry dismissed the criticism of the report. He said there is no such thing as a minor offense when an illegal immigrant breaks the law in this country.

"Once it comes to the federal government's attention that they are here illegally, they should be deported regardless of the crime they are accused of committing," Derry said. "Immigration laws need to be enforced routinely and fairly and they need to be enforced across the board."

Local members of Congress had differing views on the report.

Rep. Joe Baca, D-San Bernardino, said in a statement that the Department of Homeland Security should "seriously consider scrapping the flawed 287(g) program."

Many reports have connected the program to civil rights violations, including racial and ethnic profiling, Baca said.

The program also diverts scarce resources from the core public safety mission of local police, he added.

Fonzi said the Sheriff's Department works very hard not to engage in racial profiling.

"The bulk of our detainees are from Mexico, but it's because of our geographic relationship, not because we are identifying any racial or ethnic background or group," Fonzi said. "We're very sensitive to that and we're very careful."

Rep. Gary Miller, R-Brea, said the program has resulted in the deportation of about 60,000 illegal immigrants since 2006.

"I'm sure you can find minor flaws with any government program," said Miller, whose district includes Chino and Chino Hills. "Is the overall benefit worthy of the program? From what I see, it absolutely is."

http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_14825213