Canton, Cherokee County, Ga. August 23, 2007- Sheriff Roger Garrison has requested an assessment from the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of the Cherokee Sheriff’s Office to determine if the new ICE ACCESS program would be beneficial to the needs of Cherokee County.
ICE announced information this week of a new program called ICE ACCESS (Agreements of Communities to Enhance Safety and Security). ICE ACCESS will provide local law enforcement agencies an opportunity to team with ICE to combat specific challenges in their communities.
There are numerous programs that fall under ICE ACCESS including the 287(g) program, Asset Forfeiture, Criminal Alien Program, Customs Cross-designation, Document and Benefit Fraud Task Forces, Equitable Sharing/Joint Operations, Fugitive Operation Teams, National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center, Law Enforcement Support Center, Operation Community Shield, Operation Firewall, and Operation Predator. Descriptions of these programs can be viewed at www.ice.gov.
“We currently enjoy a good working relationship with ICE, this program could help establish an even stronger relationship and improve our ability to address specific challenges that we face in Cherokee County as it relates to illegal immigration”.----Sheriff Roger Garrison