Salt Lake County deputy sheriffs soon may drive illegal aliens out of town, motoring them to a federal collection facility in Las Vegas.
Fed up with illegals filling the county jail and crowding Pioneer Park, Salt Lake County Sheriff Aaron Kennard wants to pay a dozen deputies overtime to help federal immigration officers round up illegal aliens and ship them home."I'd rather do that every other week rather than keep the jail full of illegal aliens," Kennard said. It's cheaper for the county to drive the illegals to Las Vegas than it is to keep them in jail.
"Everyone wins," Kennard said. "It cuts down on the number of people in jail and the county saves money."
Rep. Enid Greene Waldholtz, R-Utah, also wants the federal government to beef up deportation of criminals in Salt Lake City in the wake of the fatal shooting last month of Diane Purper, a mother a five. The man charged with the crime is an illegal alien who was released from the Salt Lake County Jail because of overcrowding, Waldholtz told a meeting of the House Rules Committee.
The committee adopted Waldholtz' amendment to an immigration bill to emphasize the Immigration and Naturalization Service's duty to deport illegal aliens who commit crimes. The House will debate the bill next week.
"We wanted to convey a resolution directing INS to particularly focus on illegal aliens conducting criminal activity and particularly drug trafficking," Waldholtz said. "In 1995, 80 percent of felony narcotics arrests were illegal aliens. But the gang unit told me there is virtually no reason to detain them becbecause INS units are so lax."
Kennard got the idea after listening to immigration officers complain recently about budget problems. Kennard suggested the county throw manpower into more aggressive deportation.
Getting rid of criminal aliens has been the local INS office's No. 1 priority, said Meryl E. Rogers, director of the Utah INS office. They work with the U.S. Attorney's Office to prosecute people convicted of an aggravated felony who re-enter illegally. So far, they've sent about 40 criminals to federal prison for at least four years. But the lack of officers to pick up aliens, staff to process deportation orders and space to detain them hampers efforts.
INS last year deported more than 700 criminal aliens, said Rogers. This year they expect to deport at least 1,000.
That isn't nearly enough, Kennard said. "More than 70 percent of those they bring in from round-ups in Pioneer Park are illegals." They languish in jail or are freed because federal agents can't deport them fast enough.
At first, the INS wasn't interested in Kennard's offer. Last week, he pitched the idea to Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah. Hatch was intrigued.
"The senator started pushing from his end. Pretty soon people started listening and things started happening," Kennard said.
Kennard hopes to finalize a deal this month. "I'm going to make this happen. We're going to start doing this in the next three or four weeks."
Rogers concedes his office could use the help. "We plan to take advantage of that where appropriate. But it's not going to solve the whole problem."
Currently, Salt Lake City only has two INS agents, Salt Lake County Commissioner Brent Overson said. "We asked for more. Arizona was awarded 14, but we didn't get any." Utah wants 24 new agents, said Salt Lake County Commissioner Mary Callaghan.
Waldholtz applauded increased border patrols in Arizona and other states, but said states such as Utah need more INS agents, too. "We're saying with the resources we're giving you, you need to pay particular attention to drug activity . . . We need to deport them the first time we pick them up in criminal activity."
Until government supplies more officers, Kennard hopes his own men can send a message to illegal aliens. They are traveling 1,500 miles from the border to Salt Lake City because the word is out that the city is easy on illegals.
"We don't do anything to them and they know that," Kennard said. "I want to make it undesirable to come to Salt Lake City. I want to book them, get a conviction and deport them out. Then they'll get the message."
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Immigration bill
The House Rules Committee amended the immigration overhaul bill to protect preferential immigration status of adult children, siblings and parents of legal residents and U.S. citizens.
The bill would have eliminated special categories, retaining preference only for adult children to age 25 who never married, are childless and dependent for federal income tax purposes.
Such family-friendly measures are needed, said Rep. Enid Waldholtz, R-Utah, "as we're talking about the need to sustain families.
"I know that the strong feelings I have for my daughter will never change regardless of whether she is an adult or a child and I know that immigrant parents feel the same way about their children."