NW Ark. police agencies want in on deporting illegal immigrants


SPRINGDALE, Ark. - Four police agencies in northwest Arkansas have applied for federal authority to detain illegal immigrants who commit crimes and to help deport them from the United States.

Springdale, Rogers, Washington County and Benton County have applied for the program, which gives state and local officials authority to question illegal immigrants and initiate the deportation process.

The program covers illegal immigrants arrested on misdemeanors and felonies, as well as those in the country on expired work or student visas.

The Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation estimates that about 50,000 illegal immigrants live in Arkansas. In April, federal agents visited city and county jails in northwest Arkansas and said the facilities were sufficient to house and operate federal computer systems.

If the four agencies are accepted into the program, Benton and Washington counties could have as many as 19 certified agents identifying illegal immigrants, investigating criminal cases and making deportation recommendations to federal judges.

Nationwide, 20 approved programs of 349 trained officers combined are in the program. Applications from 71 agencies are pending.

Agencies in the program have a memorandum of understanding with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Chosen officers attend a four-week training course on immigration law, document examination and how to initiate the removal process.

As elsewhere, local taxpayers fund the program.

Springdale Police Chief Kathy O'Kelley says she plans to ask for five new hires for the program. In Rogers, Police Chief Steve Helms plans to ask for six new hires. Washington County Sheriff Tim Helder expects to ask for four new deputies, and Benton County Sheriff Keith Ferguson says he would have four deputies who would perform their regular duties as well as the immigration investigations.

The programs in Springdale, Benton and Washington counties would make immigration inquiries only of those who are arrested.

Rogers is considering having officers ask about immigration at the scene of an arrest or traffic stop. Hispanic leaders in Rogers say that approach could be used to harass motorists.

Ana Hart, the former Hispanic outreach coordinator for Tyson Foods Inc. in Springdale, says state and local agencies are having to consider the federal program because Congress has yet to solve the problem.

"This is a response to the frustration with legislators not being able to address illegal immigration from the top," she says.

Information from: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, http://www.arkansasonline.com

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