WASHINGTON (AP) — The Congressional Hispanic Caucus is adding its voice to those who want the federal government to stop checking fingerprints of people booked at local and state jails to find immigrants who can be deported.
The caucus has written a letter to President Barack Obama asking him to freeze the fingerprint searching program known as Secure Communities. The letter was sent Thursday.
Through Secure Communities, the FBI shares with the Homeland Security Department fingerprints that local and state law enforcement have sent to the FBI to get criminal histories. The Homeland Security Department checks the prints against its immigration records to identify people illegally in the country or who can be forced to leave the U.S.
The Hispanic lawmakers had asked Obama earlier this week to focus immigration resources on criminals.
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