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Posted November 21, 2007

ACLU probes sheriff's dealings with illegal immigrants

By Janet Craigmiles
For the Daily Tribune

The American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin has accused the Marathon County Sheriff's Department of overstepping its bounds when dealing with illegal immigrants.


"It has come to my attention that the Marathon County Sheriff's Department has engaged in efforts to enforce immigration law. It is unclear upon what legal authority the department relies for these efforts, and it does not appear that such authority exists," said ACLU attorney Karyn Rotker in a letter to the Sheriff's Department, dated Oct. 30.


"We do not violate civil rights," said Capt. Tom Kujawa of the Marathon County Sheriff's department.


Kujawa prepared the Sheriff's Department's response letter to the ACLU. In it, he asked the organization for specific examples and proof that his department had violated immigration rules.


"They did not respond to either our phone calls or e-mails," Kujawa said of the ACLU.


No specific allegations have been made against the Sheriff's Department, but several concerns have been brought to the attention of the ACLU by organizations and people within Marathon County, Rotker told the Wausau Daily Herald.


The ACLU has issues with portions of a Sheriff's Department policy on checking an immigrant's status, she said. The policy states individuals cannot be stopped solely for the purpose of determining their immigration status, but it also says the Sheriff's Department will call U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, officials if they suspect a person is in violation of immigration law.


"There is no state or federal law that gives local authorities the right to enforce civil immigration violations," Rotker said.


If the Sheriff's Department has contacted ICE during the course of an investigation, the ACLU wants to review the circumstances of each case to determine whether any rules were violated, Rotker said.


"They are welcome to do that," Kujawa said.


ICE officials have been called when necessary and the department is comfortable it is following legal requirements, he said.


"We can't turn our back on violations," he said.


www.wisconsinrapidstribune.com