Program targets suspected criminals

Published Sunday, October 28, 2007
By John Harbin
Times-News Staff Writer

Sheriff Rick Davis said it's stunning for the federal government to move agents and reassign resources for North Carolina to participate in an illegal immigrant deportation program.

The 287(g) program could be a reality in Henderson County as U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement is looking to make North Carolina a pilot state for the program.

So far, four North Carolina counties -- Alamance, Cabarrus, Gaston and Mecklenburg -- have partnered with ICE through the program started in 1996 that trains and certifies local law enforcement officers. Those counties have access to several ICE programs, including one that helps identify illegal immigrants processed at jails and prisons.

Police not included

While the Henderson County Sheriff's Office is working with ICE, Davis said the Hendersonville Police Department will not.

"There are two levels of training," Davis said. "The first level is on the detention center level and the second level is for street officers. ICE has said they will not approve the street officer level of training."

Davis said the program would not be cost effective if training of patrol officers is added. Davis said it would take hours for a patrol officer to detain a suspected illegal immigrant who committed a crime and go through all of the ICE paperwork.

"Most of the training we will be doing is related to constitutional law and immigration law," Davis said. "All of the training will take place locally at the Justice Academy."

Davis said the 287(g) program is designed to enable state and local law enforcement personnel, incidental to a lawful arrest and during the course of their normal duties, to question and detain individuals for potential deportation if they are identified as illegal aliens suspected of committing a state crime.

The program is not designed to allow state and local agencies to perform random street operations, Davis said.

It's also not designed to impact issues such as excessive occupancy and day laborer activities. ICE officials have emphasized that the program is designed to identify individuals for potential removal who pose a threat to public safety, as a result of an arrest or conviction for state crimes.

Davis explained that when a suspect is arrested for breaking a state law, they are taken to the detention center.

"There are two paths we will take," Davis said. "The suspect will be asked where they were born. If they answer something other than the U.S., we will begin the 287(g) process. To verify anyone's statements, we will have access to ICE and Department of Justice databases."

Davis said if a suspect is found to be in the U.S. illegally, the detention officer will begin a case file, which starts the deportation process.

"And then the suspect is set for a deportation hearing," Davis said. "We have been told within 72 hours of beginning the process, we will have arranged transport to another detention facility."

A suspect will only be transported to another detention facility if the district attorney decides not to pursue the state charges.

"It will all depend on the circumstances if we deport an individual or they stand trial for the crime they have committed," Davis said.

Some Latinos concerned

Patrick Tapia, director of the Latino Advocacy Coalition in Henderson County, said the Latino community is overall in favor of the 287(g) programs.

"I think there are different feelings in the Latino community," Tapia said. "I don't think legal residents have any concerns."

Tapia said people who are undocumented have major concerns because they have no help.

"The reason illegal residents are concerned is because they have no way to identify themselves if they are innocent of the crimes," Tapia said.

Tapia said Sheriff Davis has done a good job of explaining 287(g) to the Latino community.

"Some people want to see this program as a way to get rid of all undocumented residents, but that's not what it's about," Tapia said.

Davis said 287(g) will definitely not solve the illegal immigration issue.

"The system is so broken it will take reform across the board to solve the problem," Davis said. "The federal government must address this problem on a higher level."