Feds answer on illegals - Sheriff said he would start driving them to Mexican border - Articles - CAIR

The El Paso County sheriff quickly earned federal immigration officials' attention by warning that he'd start driving undocumented immigrants [criminal illegal aliens] from his jail to the Mexican border rather than continue to pay for their upkeep, and release some to the streets.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials last week told U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., that they will consider opening a Colorado Springs office to help process the immigrants for deportation.

That's welcome news to county officials, but they say it won't do anything to ease the county's more than $1 million annual cost for housing undocumented immigrants [criminal illegal aliens].

"It won't solve the problem, but it will speed up processing and create a push to bring a detention facility," said Jim Bensberg, chairman of the El Paso County commissioners.

"The situation can't get any worse than it is."

El Paso County spent $1.2 million in 2004 to jail illegal immigrants, said Bensberg. This year, the price tag will be higher because the jail is now housing 75 to 100 undocumented workers [criminal illegal aliens] a day, compared with 50 to 60 last year, he said....

Sheriff Terry Maketa, ...notified ICE and the Mexican consulate that he wanted to drive some of the undocumented inmates to the Mexican border...

...Undersheriff Teri Goodall said about 75 percent of the undocumented inmates [criminal illegal aliens] face charges ranging from misdemeanor traffic offenses to attempted murder....

El Paso County, with 565,000 residents, has about 30,000 undocumented [criminal illegal aliens] workers....

By the numbers

$43 million: El Paso County sheriff's budget

$180,000 received in federal reimbursement for housing: illegal immigrants in 2004

$1.2 millon Annual cost of holding illegal immigrants: criminal and non-criminal, in the El Paso County Jail

80-100 Average daily population of illegal immigrants: in the El Paso County Jail in 2005.

30,000 undocumented workers [criminal illegal aliens] reside in El Paso County, which has 565,000 residents.