Program IDs Illegal Immigrant Inmates
Those Charged Deported If Determined To Be Illegal

POSTED: 1:22 pm EDT July 3, 2008

HENDERSON COUNTY, N.C. -- A new program in Henderson County will determine which inmates are illegal immigrants who will face deportation at the end of their sentences or when they bond out.

The new program will prevent a situation that has been a major headache for law enforcement.

Henderson County sheriff's Capt. Greg Cochran said, "It was almost impossible. They would have no ID on them and we would have to rely on the name and date of birth that they gave us. They would post a cash bond, walk out the door and we'd never see them again."

Henderson County is now part of the federal program that is called 287G. It got under way on Tuesday, and the sheriff said that they have already identified seven illegal immigrants in their custody. Five were arrested for robbery, one for DWI and another for driving with a revoked license.

The nine officers in the program received a month of special training with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The federal program provides a special fingerprint scanner that links to the Department of Homeland Security's database.

Henderson County Sheriff Richard Davis said, "We get very frustrated by people who commit criminal acts. They use anonymous names and they come into our detention center over and over again."

The first illegal immigrant discovered to be incarcerated was Jesus Luna Torres. He was charged with driving with a revoked license. He posted bond, but instead of being released, he was sent to an immigration court in Atlanta.

Davis said that the response to the program in the community, as well as at the Sheriff's Office, has been very supportive.

"It has been overwhelmingly positive," he said. "The volume of people that have called me -- the response to this has been overwhelmingly positive."
http://www.wyff4.com:80/news/16781651/detail.html