Sheriff meeting with ICE on federal immigration program

By: Brent Begin
Examiner Staff Writer
September 2, 2010


SAN FRANCISCO — Federal authorities agreed to a meeting with Sheriff Michael Hennessey, opening up the possibility that The City could opt out of a federal program that identifies illegal immigrants booked at County Jail.

The Secure Communities program sends fingerprint information directly from County Jail to federal immigration authorities, and it’s drawn sharp criticism from the sheriff and the progressive majority on the Board of Supervisors.

San Francisco has a sanctuary ordinance that bars city workers from assisting federal immigration authorities unless a suspected illegal immigrant is charged with a felony. In the first two months of the program, 89 suspected illegal immigrants in The City were taken by the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Of those, 50 had committed crimes and 39 were “non-criminal.â€