Summary
"Beginning in the 1990s, federal immigration agencies, overwhelmed by the enormity of the task of apprehending, detaining, and deporting the country’s almost twelve million unauthorized immigrants, launched programs and initiatives to induce the cooperation and assistance of the nation’s approximately 18,000 state and local law enforcement agencies in identifying and deporting unauthorized immigrants living in the interior of the country. ... In 1996, however, Congress passed legislation expanding the role of local law enforcement in federal immigration enforcement. ... Police executives have felt torn between a desire to be helpful and cooperative with federal immigration authorities and a concern that their participation in immigration enforcement efforts will undo the gains they have achieved through community oriented policing practices, which are directed at gaining the trust and cooperation of immigrant communities."--Executive Summary.