By Associated Press - Wednesday, March 22, 2017

CAPE MAY, N.J. (AP) - A New Jersey sheriff’s office is enrolling in a federal program so its corrections officers can enforce immigration laws.

The Cape May County Sheriff’s Office application was approved to join the program, The Press of Atlantic City reported (https://bit.ly/2nBjlvj ). Immigration and Customs Enforcement will train three corrections officers to investigate, detain and process for deportation county jail inmates who are in the country unlawfully.

ICE is “very active” in the jail in the summer when the county’s population and seasonal economy spike, Sheriff Gary Schaffer said in statement. Officers won’t go out looking for “undocumented persons.”

“Families should relax,” Schaffer said. “The only persons impacted are individuals who commit serious and violent crimes.”

But some social justice activists are still concerned. The program, however limited, will create an environment of anxiety for immigrants, they said.

“Basically, what Sheriff Schaffer is doing is building a wall through communities in Cape May County,” said Georgina Shanley, coordinator of the county’s Amnesty International chapter. “We’re definitely going to fight it. We’re not going away.”

Activists have questioned the program following a January executive order signed by Republican President Donald Trump calling for its expansion.

Though opponents of Cape May County’s application have voiced their concerns at recent freeholder meetings, the county’s governing body may not get a chance to weigh in on the matter because Schaffer isn’t sure whether he’ll bring a resolution about the program to them.

“I don’t think it’s required,” Schaffer said. “As of now, we’re in the program.”

The three officers will head to Charleston, South Carolina, for training once space becomes available, Schaffer said. That could be late May or early June.

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Information from: The Press of Atlantic City (N.J.), https://www.pressofatlanticcity.com

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