Monday, July 5, 2010

No 287(g) for Williamson County due to low volume

Harriet Vaughan reports in the Tennessean that Williamson County's application for more authority to enforce immigration law, through a program known as 287(g), has been turned down by Immigration and Customs Enforcement ("ICE"). The reason for the denial is low volume:
"Since 2007, the sheriff's office has tracked the number of people they arrest who do not have a Social Security number, were not born in the United States, and do not have a drivers license. Each time the office encounters a person that fits in that category, it immediately notifies ICE.

The numbers have dwindled since the economy turned sour, said Dobbins, who oversees the chart. The number of inmates that fit the criteria peaked at 101 in August 2007 and have been as low as 13 in June 2009.

[Sheriff Jeff] Long believes that low illegal immigration activity in the county also led to them being denied 287(g) status."
The report states that since 2007, Williamson County has participated in the Criminal Alien Program, by which the county can notify ICE of the people identified by lack of SSN, U.S. birth, and drivers' license. ICE can then conduct its own investigation of the individual's immigration status.

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