Sheriff Austin Garrett discusses new immigration plan for correctional facilities

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — Hamilton County Sheriff Austin Garrett addressed the Rotary Club Thursday morning.

The Sheriff was the special guest for the Rotary Club and he had multiple talking points.

He addressed the Rotary Club about the sheriff’s office’s past, plans for the future, and their successes.

Sheriff Garrett also discussed a new immigration plan.

He says, “Some people are here for the American dream, some people are here to cause a nightmare. There’s poison flowing into this country across the border. Not just from Mexico it’s coming from all kinds of places, but it’s coming across the border. I’m going to do what the people of this county elected me to do, and I’m going to work to keep them safe.”

The 287 G Program will allow Hamilton County to work directly with ICE.

Sheriff Garrett says, “It makes us a force multiplier for ice. It allows the deputies I select to go to the training at their facility to become a task force officer. You see that a lot of times with the bureau, ATF agencies that deploy people to these task forces. These will be correction deputies that work on a task force model and they will perform certain functions within the correction facility. This is only in the jail.”

This will continue the work the sheriff’s office is already doing.

He says, “We’ve already been out with ICE and homeland security operations on some arrests. We are going to continue to do that. You are going to see your sheriff assisting and making arrests on some of these. People that are here illegally and committing crimes, we are going to work to get out of this county.”

The deputies in the jail will be helping ICE with their workload.

The Sheriff says, “We are going to do whatever we can do to assist ICE. This is actually us doing some of the work for them within the correction facility. It makes it a little more efficient, speeds things up, and helps us get people through the process.”

The 287 G program application will have to be signed by the Sheriff and then sent to the federal government.

Sheriff Garrett says he plans to sign it.

Sheriff Garrett also said that this program will come at no additional cost to the taxpayer