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May 5, 2011

Illinois Drops Out of "Secure Communities" Program 
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Illinois has become the first state to drop out of a controversial
federal immigration enforcement policy that requires local police to
forward fingerprints of every person they arrest to the U.S. Department
of Homeland Security. The program, called Secure Communities, allows
federal immigration officials to pursue deportation against those found
to be undocumented or a non-citizen with a criminal record. Illinois
Governor Pat Quinn says Immigration and Customs Enforcement has failed
to answer complaints about the program. More than three quarters of
those targeted for deportation in Illinois were convicted of no crimes
or misdemeanors. Speaking to the website Deportation Nation, Sunita
Patel of the Center for Constitutional Rights said: "This [decision]
shows state officials can stand up to the federal government. They can
decide what's best for their constituents, not what's best for the
federal authorities."



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