Community activists in Hays County who have been fighting for policies that would eliminate jail time for minor offenses say such efforts also would keep undocumented immigrants from being deported.
The Hays County Jail has more than 40 inmates on immigration detainers. Activists with Mano Amiga, a local nonprofit that seeks to transform the criminal justice system, are demanding that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement drop its requests to hold low-level offenders in custody.
The county s long-awaited cite-and-divert program, which favors citations over jail time, could eliminate the need to issue immigration holds and therefore deportation, the group says.
“Shame on the (Hays County) sheriff s office for unnecessary arresting, and shame on the (district attorney, Wes Mau) for violating his own word on enactment of cite and divert,” leaders with Mano Amiga said in a statement.
| UPDATED: 11:54, Tue, Jan 26, 2021
Link copied Sign up for our columnists plus the most commented stories driving conversation
SUBSCRIBE Invalid email
When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Sometimes they ll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer. Our Privacy Notice explains more about how we use your data, and your rights. You can unsubscribe at any time.
The president added that his administration will confront and must defeat “political extremism, white supremacy, domestic terrorism”. CNN and MSNBC talking heads were in no doubt: Biden was declaring war on America’s true enemies. Firstly, however, to have racism at the top of the agenda is noteworthy given that survey after survey shows that after the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Australia are the least racist countries in the world – and by quite some distance.