U.S. fingerprint database on the way, sheriff says

But officers won't act as ICE agents, he assures Orange commissioners

Stanley B. Chambers Jr. - Staff Writer
Published: Fri, Jan. 23, 2009 12:30AM Modified Fri, Jan. 23, 2009 01:40AM

HILLSBOROUGH -- Detention officers using a new federal fingerprinting database are not acting as immigration agents, but they are participating in a system they will soon have no choice but to use, Orange County Sheriff Lindy Pendergrass explained during Thursday's county commissioners meeting.

Still, the commissioners are wary of the program, fearing it would violate a 2007 county resolution stating that local officers cannot enforce immigration laws. They plan to discuss the program further with Pendergrass and the county attorney.

Orange, Duplin and New Hanover counties have participated in the Secure Communities program since January. All North Carolina counties will use the system by the end of the year, Pendergrass said.

The software allows jailers to confirm a suspect's identity by placing his fingerprints in a database that pulls information from the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security. Under this system, a search would take minutes instead of days. It also can identify unauthorized immigrants and alert U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Unlike the 287(g) program, this program does not give jailers the power to initiate deportation proceedings. Instead, ICE would place a detainer on the suspect, who would be picked up by immigration agents after the criminal case is disposed, said Barbara Gonzalez, ICE spokeswoman.

"It's not 287(g)," said Gonzalez, who was not at the meeting. "At the end of the day, they'll all have one common goal. And that is to identify those who are in the county illegally and prioritize the cases of those criminal aliens who pose the greatest threat."

Pendergrass said deputies aren't notified of someone's immigration status unless ICE contacts them. But the system directly contradicts the resolution, said Marty Rosenbluth, an attorney with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice.

"Secure Communities doesn't just violate the spirit and the intent of this resolution; it violates the letter of it as well," he said.

Under 287(g), detention officers are allowed to begin deportation proceedings for illegal immigrants. Wake, Alamance, Cumberland and Mecklenburg are among the counties participating in 287(g).

Commissioner Pam Hemminger, concerned with potential abuses of the system, asked Pendergrass whether people are fingerprinted for traffic violations. State law requires fingerprints from anyone brought to the jail, he said.

One of the main concerns is that people could manipulate the system "to take advantage of people we don't want to take advantage of," Commissioner Barry Jacobs said.

stan.chambers@newsobserver.com or 919-932-2025

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