Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Putnam sheriff defends policy on illegal immigrants

By MICHAEL RISINIT
THE JOURNAL NEWS

BREWSTER - A local chapter of the world's largest organization of sworn law enforcement officers called on the Putnam County sheriff yesterday to participate in a federal program to train local deputies to initiate deportation proceedings for criminal illegal aliens.

"The vast majority of frontline law enforcement officers think it's a necessary tool," said James O'Neill, president of the Stephen P. Driscoll Memorial Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police in Patterson.

He was referring to a program called 287(g), part of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which trains local law enforcement officers to run the fingerprints of any arrested, foreign-born individual through a national database to see whether he or she is eligible for deportation.

O'Neill, a retired New York City police detective, was among several individuals faulting Putnam County Sheriff Donald Smith yesterday in Brewster, in the second political rally in about a week calling for his participation in 287(g).

Smith said his department has "a model working relationship" with Immigration and Customs Enforcement and that the federal government needs to secure the country's borders before any further, local immigration enforcement becomes effective.

The Driscoll Lodge consists of 1,100 current and retired law enforcement officers from Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess counties, O'Neill said, including the unionized deputies in the Sheriff's Office, officers from the Kent and Carmel departments, and locally assigned state troopers.

The sheriff said his department reports arrested illegal aliens to ICE and, if the person is wanted by ICE, holds them until federal agents take custody. In the first half of this year, the department turned over 13 wanted inmates to ICE.

Smith said ICE is interested in deporting only those who have committed serious felonies, and the lack of federal immigration judges and detention space limits that effort. The 287(g) program would have "no significant impact" on combating illegal immigration in a rural county like Putnam, he said, without changes on the national level.

"Feedback from ICE officials and the referrals we receive from other law enforcement agencies seeking information about our program indicates to me we're doing it right," Smith said.

Smith also took criticism from Ed Kowalski, the uncle of Elizabeth Butler. The North Salem teen was murdered two years ago by her boyfriend, Ariel Menendez, an illegal Guatemalan immigrant with a criminal record that included a felony conviction for driving while intoxicated. Kowalski is a foundation board member with 9/11 Families for a Secure America, which works to highlight the national security perils of illegal immigration.

"Don Smith is not doing his job by refusing to enter into the 287(g) program," Kowalski said.

The 287(g) program lets local officers begin deportation proceedings, instead of waiting for an ICE agent. That, Smith said, may be needed in large jails, such as in Los Angeles, but not in Putnam.

O'Neill stressed that the effort targets serious criminals who are in the country illegally. Immigration status is determined only after the arrest.

"This is not about sweeping people off the street," he said.

Twenty-six law enforcement agencies nationwide participate in the program, from Virginia to the Southwest. The agency is now training officers from the Hudson County (N.H.) Police and the Massachusetts Department of Corrections.

"It's not the right answer for all agencies," said ICE spokesman Michael Gilhooly. He said there were no specific criteria for participation but couldn't say whether any agencies had been turned down.

The Fraternal Order of Police's support yesterday came amid the race for Southeast supervisor. Town Councilwoman Lorraine Mitts, the Republican-endorsed candidate for supervisor, called on the sheriff last week to reconsider his decision. Yesterday at the gathering on Main Street in Brewster, she pledged $100,000 from town funds toward the training if she becomes supervisor.

She faces a primary challenge from Brewster Mayor John Degnan and challenger Michael Rights. Degnan and Rights also attended yesterday's event. Degnan said he would apply to ICE for the Brewster Police Department's participation in 287(g). Rights criticized Mitts and Degnan for waiting until three weeks before the election to tackle the illegal-immigration problem.

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