Month: February 2008

Mayor: City cops do enough on illegal immigration
— Houston Chronicle²

Mayor Bill White defended the city’s policy on police screening of arrestees for illegal immigrants.

At the weekly press conference, I asked him if he thought Sheriff Tommy Thomas’ recent request for federal training for his jailers (story) would lead the city to reconsider its own policy.

White said, in essence, no.

“I think it will erode the capacity of local law enforcement if local law enforcement starts assuming more and more federal functions.”

[snip]

Footnotes
2 = article may expire in a few weeks

Immigration training for jails draws praise
The program sought by Harris County sheriff is called successful in other states
— Houston Chronicle²

The federal immigration training program Harris County Sheriff Tommy Thomas wants for a dozen jailers has been successful in identifying illegal immigrants in Arizona and Oklahoma, officials there said.

Harris County would be the first law enforcement agency in Texas to receive training from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, joining 34 departments from Florida to California that have undergone the training. Thomas announced Friday that he authorized his department to pursue the program.

The training would give employees the ability to interview inmates more thoroughly about their immigration status and authorize them to detain those in the country illegally.

Seventy departments are on a training waiting list, including four in Texas, but an ICE official would not identify them until formal agreements are signed.

[snip]

Footnotes
2 = article may expire in a few weeks