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ICE office in Fort Morgan well established

FORT MORGAN, COLORADO - While there is strong opposition to the proposed opening of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in Weld County, the agency has been quietly accepted in a neighboring county.

The federal government opened an ICE office in Morgan County five years ago because it has a large immigrant population and it's along a major interstate highway frequently used by drug dealers.

At first, local Hispanics were worried about ICE Agents coming to the county. "At the beginning it was a concern with the Hispanic community," says Martin Barrera, whose family runs a restaurant and variety store in Fort Morgan. But now he says his fears of racial profiling were unfounded. "As far as we know, we haven't seen any harassment."

Morgan County Sheriff Jim Crone says ICE agents have concentrated their efforts on serious criminals. About one fourth of the inmates in his jail are illegal aliens, and Crone says having an ICE office nearby has made it much easier to get the worst ones deported.

"We're seeing a lot of serious offenders, drug offenders, sex offenders, people that just can't stay out of trouble - they're taking those people and running them through their (ICE's) system," says Crone.

And Barrera endorses that approach. "In fact I think we need to support those kinds of activities from the government," says Barrera. "It makes our lives more peaceful and secure."