News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The Putnam County Sheriff’s Department is working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to create a new deportation program.
Sheriff Eddie Farris told the county commission about the plan Monday night, saying the 287(g) program is designed to handle any illegal immigrants that commit violent crimes. Farris said the program would allow the county to apprehend those individuals, hold them in custody, and work directly with ICE to deport them.
“We’re not looking for people who are here illegal, maybe working with a company, in the process of working on getting their citizenship and they get stopped for no driver’s license,” Farris said. “That is not who we’re talking about. We’re talking about people here committing violent crimes and major crimes.”
Farris said the county decides for itself what types of illegal activity the program will focus on fighting. Farris said he wants to get the initiative set up so Putnam County is prepared to handle any more harmful effects that are yet to come because of the nation’s open borders.
“We’ve been having some of those issues here,” Farris said. “We’ve been noticing things, our drug trade and fentanyl, and we can go into that about how that’s been affecting the communities, not just here in Putnam, in Tennessee, but all over the United States. So we know this is part of what’s coming and part of the things that we’re going to have to deal with for the next few years.”
Farris said his department recently met with ICE and filled out an application to begin the project. Farris said the county is now waiting on the federal agency to move forward.
“It could be weeks, it could be several months before we get approved to do that,” Farris said. “But I look forward to that program and we’re already working with immigration on holding inmates and some that they’ve captured elsewhere that maybe they’re transporting that we can hold them for a day or two overnight.”
Farris said Greene County and Knox County are currently the only ones in Tennessee that are using the program. Farris said the plan would be greatly beneficial in dealing with foreign criminal organizations that are becoming more prevalent in the state like Tren de Aragua should the need arise.
In other business, the commission approved a minor amendment to the county’s flood damage prevention map. The commission also agreed to nominate Commissioner Grover Bennett Jr. to continue serving on the Rail Trail Authority Board.
