ICE Shares Portion of Criminal Database With Local Police (KPBS-CA)

ICE Shares Portion of Criminal Database With Local Police
Mar 17, 2008
Amy Isackson

Law enforcement agencies in San Diego can now access portions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s federal criminal database. Law enforcement officials say it’s a step toward breaking down barriers that block information sharing. KPBS reporter Amy Isackson has the story.
Local law enforcement agencies now have access to about 23 million records related to past Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, investigations. The cases stretch back eight years.
The records on these closed cases include biographical information and a short narrative on why ICE investigated someone.
Rick Emerson is police chief in Chula Vista. He says before, local agents had to have an ICE contact and hope that person had time to run a background check. But he says now it’s not hit or miss.
Emerson: If we’re working on some kind of a narcotics investigation and an individual had some kind of a prior federal arrest, it would give the officer more information as they’re getting ready to make the contact or do the follow up on that investigation.
About 223 million such records exist. ICE officials in San Diego say they’ll continue to add more to the system.
Federal officials say the new system will not violate people’s privacy.
Amy Isackson, KPBS News.