GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Brown County Supervisor Guy Zima is asking the Brown County Sheriff’s Office to work with federal agents to help deport undocumented people.
Zima tells WLUK that by doing so, it could help ease the overcrowding in the jail.
“If we could find a way to empty the jail in whatever way possible and I certainly don’t want to have illegals putting burden on us” The Sheriff’s office would need to undergo training with federal immigration agents.
The deputies would then be able to use federal databases and question inmates about their immigration status.
Zima’s plan only applies to people who have already been arrested and are in the Brown County Jail.
“I’m not suggesting that we go do sweeps of the community I’m saying if people find their way into jail and they’re not legal citizens we don’t want them here” “It doesn’t benefit Brown County, it doesn’t benefit the jail because we have a good working relationship with ICE”
Brown County Sheriff John Gossage explained the jail already has a similar process in place with ICE agents and said the county only had 21 undocumented inmates transferred to ICE agents last year.
“Now if we have an influx in foreign born nationals then we’ll say well then it’s something that we might look at exploring” “From even what I hear from the entire Hispanic community is, if it is someone who is criminal, anybody who is undocumented or citizen doesn’t want criminals here,” said Sister Melanie Maczka, the executive director of Casa ALBA Melanie.
Sister Melanie Maczka is the executive director of Casa ALBA Melanie. It’s the Hispanic Resource Center of the greater Green Bay area.
Maczka said she has talked to the sheriff about the proposal and said as long as it targets people already in jail, her group does not have any concerns.
