CREST HAVEN – Cape May County Sheriff Gary Schaffer would like to send one brief but important message to Cape May County residents who seem distressed that the county may participate in a program to expedite the processing of illegal aliens for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“Please calm down; we are not going out in the community to arrest anybody,” he said.
Under a program first created by Congress in 1996 called the Immigration and Nationality Act, certain local law enforcement agencies may be authorized to assist in the identification of illegal aliens who have committed serious crimes while in the United States.
According to its website “In 2009, ICE revised the 287(g) delegated authority program, strengthening public safety and ensuring consistency in immigration enforcement across the country by prioritizing the arrest and detention of criminal aliens.”
The site reports that there are currently 37 agencies participating in this program nationwide; the Salem County Sheriff’s Department is the closest participating agency to Cape May County.
The 287(g) Program
ICE describes the revised “287(g)” program as a partnership that is created when a local agency signs a memorandum of agreement (MOA) detailing the scope of, and limitations to the delegation of authority granted to the local agency by ICE.
The MOA describes how the locally-trained participants will be supervised by ICE, rules about access to the ICE database, and describes training requirements and financial limitations and responsibilities.
The MOA requires that each officer attends a four-week training course that addresses key issues such as avoidance of racial profiling, immigration law, use of ICE databases, multi-cultural communications, and the citizen complaint process.
In addition, all officers must complete a one-week refresher course every two years.
Three Models of Participation
The 287(g) program features three models of local law enforcement officer participation. One called the “Jail Model” restricts operations to the jail function only.
In this model, trained officers in the jail facility identify illegal aliens through the ICE database and then process the person as such according to laws and guidelines under the Immigration and Nationality Act Section 287(g).
The second model authorizes law enforcement officers to operate in the community to identify illegal aliens that should be detained.
The third model is described as a hybrid of the first two models.
Sheriff Proposes Jail Model
Schaffer stressed that the application that he sent to ICE restricts the county’s involvement in this program to the “Jail Model.”
This means that no officer will go looking for anyone outside the jail walls. When the person is taken into custody by police on the street, his jail officers will do their normal criminal history check, and NCIC (National Crime Information Center) check to determine if the person is wanted by any other jurisdiction, including his or her immigration status.
He plans to send three corrections officers to the training if the application is approved by the federal government.
Schaffer noted that he had seen examples of illegal aliens who are charged with crimes in his county that have been released with no bail due to new bail reform guidelines.
He feels that since many of these offenders are being released because of bail reform, the ICE program will, at least, enable law enforcement to keep the illegal alien in custody based on the ICE “detainer” that would be lodged by his 287(g) officers.
Opposition
As reported in the March 8 edition of the Herald, approximately 30 persons demonstrated against the sheriff’s plan to participate in the 287(g) program citing negative community impacts and local financial burdens for their opposition.
The American Immigration Council identifies itself as a non-profit and non-partisan “voice to promote laws, policies, and attitudes that honor our proud history as a nation of immigrants.”
According to its website, the Justice Department has investigated this program and found that there is “widespread racial profiling” occurring, especially against Latinos in the southwestern United States.
They also allege that there have been “unlawful detentions” in South Carolina, according to their website. This organization also cites the negative impact this program has on “community policing” in those jurisdictions where the program is operating.
The group also cites the costs to local agencies that must pay for implementation of the program.
The Herald reviewed the memorandum of agreement signed by the Salem County Sherriff’s’ Office that specifies that the local agency must fund the salary and benefits to officers in training status, and also any administrative costs associated with the program.
Schaffer responded to that issue by pointing out that any technical infrastructure needed for this program, such as cabling and transmission lines, are already in place and that he is negotiating to have ICE cover some housing costs for his three trainees.
To contact Jim McCarty, email jmccarty@cmcherald.com.
Cape May – Governor Murphy says he doesn't know anything about the drones and doesn't know what they are doing but he does know that they are not dangerous. Does anyone feel better now?
