WKRN, Nashville, Tennessee News, Weather, and Sports |287(g) program has identified nearly 5,000 illegal aliens

287(g) program has identified nearly 5,000 illegal aliens

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - It has been nearly two years since the Davidson County Sheriff's Department began using a program that authorizes local law enforcement to the check immigration status of people arrested.

Updated numbers show the program, called 287(g), has identified over 7,000 foreign-born persons in that time.

Of those, nearly 5,000 have been placed in removal proceedings.

Davidson County modeled its 287(g) program after a program already in place in Charlotte, North Carolina.

To compare, Charlotte has identified over 9,000 foreign-born persons and started the removal process on nearly 6,000 people since 2006.

In the year prior to implementing 287(g) in Davidson County, the sheriff's department had identified just 151 illegal immigrants.

Prevoius Stories:

• March 25, 2008: Sheriff expresses city's need for immigration judge
• March 25, 2008: 287(g) program turns 1