Gwinnett County Sheriff Butch Conway has renewed the county's partnership with the feds to put a hold on undocumented immigrants who become incarcerated.
Deputy Shannon Volkadov explained the 287(g) program is an agreement that allows the department to check the legal status of someone who is incarcerated.
"If the arrestee is an illegal alien, these deputies place a hold on the arrestee," Volkadov said. "They are then released to ICE custody within 48 hours of satisfying any local criminal charges they face."
Many opponents of the partnership say such agreements deter people from reporting crimes for fear of deportation. However, Volkadov said enquiring about legal status is only done inside the jail and is never done, or even allowed to be done, by deputies who are out on the streets.
Conway entered into the 287g agreement for the first time in 2010 and said the ICE partnership will continue to be renewed as long as he remains in office.
