Texas County Sheriff Cooperating with ICE 24/7

AP reports that Travis County (Texas) Sheriff Greg Hamilton has agreed to let federal immigration agents set up an office in the county jail to more often monitor whether inmates booked into the downtown facility are legally in the United States. Hamilton said this week that agents from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency will likely be stationed in the jail 24 hours a day, seven days a week in coming months. They began increasing their presence in the facility late last year. Until recently, federal officials said agents only occasionally visited the jail to check the immigration status among inmates but sought more access from Hamilton.

Travis County has taken cooperation with federal immigration authorities to new levels.  We will see what, if any, impact this has on removals and on the cooperation with police by the immigrant community.

KJ