According to an article on nytimes.com: “A government report questions the effectiveness of a federal program, long criticized by immigrant advocacy groups, that deputizes police officers as immigration agents.”
Critics of the program argue that spending scarce resources to have local police working to deport smll fish takes away from time that could be better spent apprhending dangerous criminals. Another problem with such a program is the distrust of police it creates within the immigrant population. The concept of community policing is an extremely effective tool for law enforcement. It essentially means that community members trust, help and participate with the police in protecting the community. If undocumented workers fear being detained and deported when in contact with police officers – their trust turns to fear and they are much less likely to testify as witnesses or report crimes.
