Phoenix — Phoenix police union leaders met Tuesday in Washington, D.C., with U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, asking his support for Arizona’s immigration law, saying city police have essentially used a similar directive since 2008 to detain undocumented immigrants.
Top leaders of the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association told Holder that Senate Bill 1070 features similar provisions as the Phoenix policy known as Operations Order 1.4, which the city established to give officers the discretion to report suspected undocumented immigrants to federal agents in cases where the suspects are linked with other crimes.
PLEA President Mark Spencer estimated the Phoenix police policy had saved the city more than $600,000 in the past two years by transporting undocumented immigrants directly to immigration authorities, rather than paying to book them into jail.
Read more on the Arizona Republic.