AMARILLO, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) — Counties across the Panhandle take part in the 287 (g) program, which, according to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), allows ICE to delegate state and local law enforcement officers the authority to perform specified immigration officer functions under ICE’s direction and oversight.
There are four models of the program according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Two of the models seen in the Panhandle Jail Enforcement Model and Task Force Model.
Potter County 90-day burn ban remains in effect until April 19
The Potter County Sheriff’s Office has been participating in the Jail Enforcement Model for almost eight years. The model allows the department to work with ICE on people who have been charged or have pending charges.
“We have guys over there that have been through the training, and they are now technically ICE agents, but they still work for me,” explained Potter County Sheriff Brian Thomas. “They had to go through training for a month, and they went back east to do that training.”…