Local Law Enforcement and Illegal Immigrants Essay

It is not only a controversial topic but also essential to explore the issue of allowing local law enforcement to detain illegal immigrants for minor crimes and transfer them to the federal immigration authorities. The problem is rife in the United States and affects many of the immigrants; even those who have not committed crimes. This issue is not only creating a problem for the illegal immigrants, but also for the local law enforcement. The possible cause of local law enforcement officers to be granted the authority to detain illegal immigrants for minor crimes and transfer them to federal immigration authorities is the fear of increased criminal activities taking place in America. Those with minor offenses need to be deported because by releasing them to the state; they get the opportunity to re-offend. Another cause is because the immigrants are illegally staying in the U.S. which make them criminals for flaunting the procedures set out for legal immigration into the country. Continual allowing of such individuals to remain in the United States puts the security of the nation at risk. The federal government, the Congress, and the local law enforcement officers, as well as the sheriffs, are involved in the problem of detention and transfer of immigrants.

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Bob Gualtieri wrote an article on "Why Feds and Sheriffs are at Odds" which is a useful source identified for this research. It is an essential resource for understanding and explaining the issue of detention and transfer of immigrants in the United States since it addresses the problem directly. Crucial information obtained from this work is the challenge that the federal government mandates the Sheriffs to enforce the law without providing enough resources (Gualtieri 7). He contends that the Sheriffs only reserve the powers to detain illegal immigrants on civil matters and not criminal issues. However, they are just obeying the law since the federal government has the highest authority.

The Sheriffs are forced to detain illegal immigrants with minor crimes at an extended time in the jails without the federal government taking action. The Department of Homeland Security's Immigration and Customs Enforcement seems not careful in following the law by asking the Sheriffs to ignore the U.S Constitution and detain people past their time and under the allowed local charges (Gualtieri 7). The article by Gualtieri is essential and dependable regarding the problem since it informs about challenges that the local law enforcement is facing without the help of the national authorities. The source provides more information on the subject. It enhances the thinking regarding civil and criminal matters for illegal immigrants, and who should handle them. It may be possible for one to think that the local authorities have powers to deal with criminal cases for illegal immigrants in the U.S. However, Gualtieri in the writing clarifies that the Sheriffs do not have the authority to detain illegal immigrants for criminal matters. It provides crucial information on why some of the U.S Counties are resisting in the implementation of the local law requirements.

Another article presented in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review titled "More Pennsylvania Counties Resist Detaining Illegal Immigrants in Jails" explores the discourse on detention and transfer of immigrants further. In the article, the federal authorities are accused of failing in their duty of deporting illegal immigrants after the local enforcement presents them. Megan and Raap (2015), offers essential information regarding the problem of immigrant detention and transfer. There are about seven counties in the west of Pennsylvania where the local law enforcers have refused to continue detaining illegal immigrants. Suspects of violation of the law and minor crimes are held in the local customer for over forty-eight hours (Megan and Raap 1). The authors contend that it is a time when such criminals should be released or presented to the federal authorities. The same article indicates that there are thirty-two counties in Pennsylvania do not honor the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer requests. According to ICE, illegal immigrants with minor crimes should not be released to the society. Such an action compromises the safety of the community (Megan and Raap 1). It undermines the ability of the ICE to protect the safety of the public and impedes them in enforcing the immigration laws.

The information provided by Megan and Raap is crucial and dependable concerning the local law enforcement being allowed to detain illegal immigrants with minor crimes and transfer them to federal immigration authorities. Megan and Raap (2015) is a source that provides two viewpoints of the issues where one sees it as a violation of the civil rights of the immigrants while the other views it as a way of maintaining safety for the public. The material provided in the article helps one to think broadly about the subject in two different perspectives. The federal government may be increasing responsibility to local law enforcement by allowing them to detain illegal immigrants with minor crimes for more hours than the stated in the Constitution. However, it is a method that the government is using to maintain the safety of Americans which is more important than the other aspects under consideration. It is less expected that the local law enforcement lacks necessary authority and how the federal government goes ahead to require them in acting as ICE agents.

In his article, Baker tries to answer the issue of immigrant detention and transfer by authorities more transparently. The author enumerates measures that the federal government needs to take before allowing the local law enforcement to act as ICE agents. She argues that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement should implement programs such as the Program, 287(g) appropriately to assist the national authorities in fighting illegal immigrants with minor crimes (McNeill 1). These measures are critical in solving the problem of inefficiencies that are evident in the local law enforcement. Therefore, effective enforcement of the immigration law at the local level requires the ICE to train the local law enforcers, provide them with resources as well as funding the implementation of deporting the illegal immigrants with minor crimes (Baker 1). Without proper training, the local law enforcement will remain ineffective in fighting minor crimes committed by illegal immigrants. Baker's article helps in understanding programs that the federal government is implementing to combat illegal immigration. If such programs are included at the local level, then, the local law enforcement will understand measures that they need to take in implementing the ICE expectations in detaining illegal immigrants with minor crimes and transferring them to the national authorities for deportation (McNeill 1). It will be a suitable way in which the local authorities will participating in addressing the issue. These are actions that the current president is serious about in enforcing the federal law on immigration.

Another relevant article that tackles the issue of immigrant detention and relocation by authorities is one written by Beaver entitled "Trump Administration Looks to Shame Sanctuary Cities." It shows how the president is furious with cities that are not implementing the local law enforcement requirement by the ICE. Cities that do not cooperate with the "detain illegal immigrants" request for those in the U.S illegally and with minor crimes will no longer receive funding from the federal government (Beavers 1). Naming them as Sanctuary Cities, Trump stated that sanctuary cities would be blocked from the national funding because they are not in compliance with the federal immigration laws. Trump was concerned with the national security and terming criminal aliens as a threat to other Americans of they are released from local custody. Beavers's information is crucial and dependable regarding the problem of allowing local law enforcement in detaining illegal immigrants with minor crimes and transferring them to national authorities as it supports an earlier claim of the safety of the public. The aspect of national security provides an essential understanding of the President's concern about the need for local law enforcement participation in fighting crimes committed by illegal immigrants. After releasing minor criminal offenders, there is a high likeliness of reoffending with other major crimes.

Tim in the article titled "Sanctuary and Sanctimony: Defying the Law is Defying the Law Even if it's Immigration Law" presents Trump's concern about the sanctuary cities. The article provides crucial information about the issue of allowing local law enforcement to detain illegal immigrants with minor crimes. The author supports Trump's idea of breaking the immigration law and facing the consequences. The underlying assertion of the author is that criminal immigrants should be arrested and deported. The article helps exposes the problem in a different perspective. For instance, it shows that the law enforcement is less concerned with illegal immigrants, but dealing with criminal illegal immigrants. Local law enforcement should, therefore, be allowed to exercise the duty of detaining immigrants illegally in the U.S with minor crimes and transfer them to national authorities for deportation. They are convicted illegal immigrants who should not be given the right to continue living in the country with which they are here illegally. The article is useful in learning about the importance of the criminal element when dealing with unlawful immigrants. However, a significant question arises when the local police force detains illegal immigrants without any criminal activity they have committed. Some of the local law enforcement officers hold these immigrants with the only aim of enforcing the immigration law of detaining those who are in the country illegally.

The article "Local Officers Join Search for Illegal Immigrants" written by Rachel Swarns reveals that there has been a debate between those advocating for and against illegal immigrants being detained by the police. The information shows that the issue of holding undocumented immigrants with minor crimes was there in the past. It is an issue that has been on the debate for many years. Legal and illegal immigrants without any crime are suffering at the hands of the police and other local law enforcement agencies. They have fear to cooperate with the local law enforcement in activities such as reporting crime as doing that may lead them to be detained based on racial profiling. Even though local law enforcement have joined in enforcing the immigration laws, Swarns was concerned about the dangerous use of authority given to the local law enforcement in mistreating innocent immigrants.

In conclusion, allowing local law enforcement to detain illegal immigrants and transfer to them to federal immigration authorities is a current issue under debate. The president, citizens, immigrants, and media have their views regarding their problems. While it is a problem that has been there before, today, the concern revolves around the efficiency of local law enforcement in implementing the immigration law. Another worry also lies in the federal governs support for local law enforcement to efficiently enforce the immigration law as required by the ICE. Further, there is a challenge of inadequate training for the local law enforcement on implementing the new responsibility.

From the presented viewpoints, local law enforcement should be allowed to detain illegal immigrants and transfer them to national authorities. However, it is essential to take a few considerations. There is the need to provide a precise definition in the Constitut...