Important update that may affect some immigrants in Lowell
Press Release by the Lowell Police department

Contact:                                                                                 Public Information Officer:
Captain Kelly Richardson                                                                   Captain Kelly Richardson
Krichardson@lowellma.gov                                                               Office: (978) 674-1709

Lowell, Ma (May 8,2012) Today an announcement was made that effective May 15th 2012 all communities in the State of Massachusetts will have to comply with the  Secure Communties guidelines.

14 counties across the State will be effected. Barnsatble, Berkshire, Bristol, Dukes, Essex, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, Nantucket, Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk, Worcester and Middlesex counties have been notified. This will have no effect on how Lowell Police Department handles its fingerprints or information sharing.

Once SC is deployed, the newly activated jurisdictions should continue their longstanding practice of sending fingerprints taken as a result of a criminal justice purpose to the State Identification Bureau who then will forward the submission to the Department of Justice's FBI CJIS Division pursuant to state and local policies and procedures. The activation of SC does not in any way change local jurisdiction's existing law enforcement or fingerprinting policies, procedures, or practices. The only new development that results from the activation of SC in the remaining jurisdictions is that, once the FBI CJIS Division receives the fingerprints for a search of the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Information System (IAFIS), they will send the fingerprints to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for a search of the Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT) System.

Once received by DHS, the fingerprints will be compared to biometric information in the Department's immigration databases. When there is a match, a trained ICE officer determines what, if any, immigration enforcement action may be appropriate. SC does not authorize local law enforcement agencies to enforce immigration law or task them with any additional responsibilities. In fact, following the activation of Secure Communities in the new jurisdictions, it is important that law enforcement agencies there enforce criminal law in exactly the same manner as they did before Secure Communities. It is equally important that departments of corrections in the new jurisdictions not change their operations in any way following the activation of Secure Communities.

If ICE officers determine that an individual identified through Secure Communities may be removable, a detainer may be issued for that individual. The detainer requests the state or local jail facility to hold the individual for up to 48 hours (excluding weekends and holidays) beyond the time they would normally be released from custody. This is to provide ICE officers the opportunity to interview the person and/or take them into custody prior to the person being released into the community.

ICE is committed to focusing its immigration enforcement resources in a manner that best promotes public safety, border security, and the integrity of the immigration system in all its enforcement programs, including Secure Communities. In practice, this means that ICE places a high priority on the removal of aliens convicted of crimes, recent illegal border crossers, immigration fugitives, and repeat immigration law violators. This prioritization, however, does not mean ICE will decline to remove other aliens identified through Secure Communities who are present in the United States without lawful authority.

All determinations about whether to remove aliens identified through Secure Communities are made on a case-by-case basis, considering the unique circumstances of each case. In making these determinations, ICE considers factors such as criminal record, immigration history (including whether the person was previously deported or has an outstanding removal order from an immigration judge), family ties, duration of stay in the U.S., and significant medical and mental health issues. In cases that fall outside ICE's immigration enforcement priorities, various forms of prosecutorial discretion may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Once SC is deployed, the newly activated jurisdictions should continue their longstanding practice of sending fingerprints taken as a result of a criminal justice purpose to the State Identification Bureau who then will forward the submission to the Department of Justice's FBI CJIS Division pursuant to state and local policies and procedures. The activation of SC does not in any way change local jurisdiction's existing law enforcement or fingerprinting policies, procedures, or practices. The only new development that results from the activation of SC in the remaining jurisdictions is that, once the FBI CJIS Division receives the fingerprints for a search of the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Information System (IAFIS), they will send the fingerprints to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for a search of the Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT) System.

Once received by DHS, the fingerprints will be compared to biometric information in the Department's immigration databases. When there is a match, a trained ICE officer determines what, if any, immigration enforcement action may be appropriate. SC does not authorize local law enforcement agencies to enforce immigration law or task them with any additional responsibilities. In fact, following the activation of Secure Communities in the new jurisdictions, it is important that law enforcement agencies there enforce criminal law in exactly the same manner as they did before Secure Communities. It is equally important that departments of corrections in the new jurisdictions not change their operations in any way following the activation of Secure Communities.

If ICE officers determine that an individual identified through Secure Communities may be removable, a detainer may be issued for that individual. The detainer requests the state or local jail facility to hold the individual for up to 48 hours (excluding weekends and holidays) beyond the time they would normally be released from custody. This is to provide ICE officers the opportunity to interview the person and/or take them into custody prior to the person being released into the community.

ICE is committed to focusing its immigration enforcement resources in a manner that best promotes public safety, border security, and the integrity of the immigration system in all its enforcement programs, including Secure Communities. In practice, this means that ICE places a high priority on the removal of aliens convicted of crimes, recent illegal border crossers, immigration fugitives, and repeat immigration law violators. This prioritization, however, does not mean ICE will decline to remove other aliens identified through Secure Communities who are present in the United States without lawful authority.

All determinations about whether to remove aliens identified through Secure Communities are made on a case-by-case basis, considering the unique circumstances of each case.

Our commitment to our community remains steadfast. The Lowell Police Department with its community based policing will continue to work to make this city a safe place to live for all its residents.