Cops can attack crime and immigration.

Moves by authorities in Los Angeles and Orange counties to use federal immigration laws against felons are being eyed warily by Latino and immigration rights groups in San Diego.

For now, however, San Diego-area cops aren’t jumping on the bandwagon.

Even those law enforcement agencies invoking immigration powers insist they’re doing so to attack their crime problems, not to act as surrogates for the Border Patrol – although the law’s wording would seem to allow for exactly that.

“States have the right to use this tool. We just offer it,” said Manny Van Pelt, a spokesman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office.

The tool is a provision in the 1996 Immigration and Nationality Act, which lets police act as immigration officers. The authorization gives law enforcement access to immigration databases, a powerful tool in dealing with felons who are illegal immigrants.

Original article