On June 5, the Secure Communities program went into effect in
Washington, DC. With this latest expansion, the Secure Communities
program is operating in almost every area across the nation. Run by
United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Secure
Communities program requires the fingerprints of all individuals
booked into DC jails to be sent to the FBI and the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS). The agencies cross-reference the
fingerprints with federal immigration databases. ICE can then issue
a detainer request for an individual they wish to remain in
custody. The detainer request asks local law enforcement officials
to hold the individual for up to 48 hours until the ICE can come in
and take over custody.
