Arpaio: ICE refusing to take illegal immigrants from MCSO

◼ Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Lt. Justin Griffin says they pulled over a vehicle and have eight people in their custody for human smuggling at 35th Avenue and Durango. Griffin says they attempted to give four of the detainees to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, but MCSO says ICE is refusing to take them. - KPHO

◼ Arizona sheriff's officers turn in federal credentials - USA Today

Dozens of Sheriff Joe Arpaio's jail officers lined up at a news conference in Phoenix Wednesday to ceremoniously hand in their federal credentials a week after they were stripped of the ability to verify the immigration status of inmates.

Arpaio spoke at the same news conference, saying he's going to hold the federal government to its promise to send 50 federal agents to do such screening in his jail. But he predicted there will be illegal immigrants in jail who won't be deported and will be put back on streets.
"I want to see how many agents are going to be coming to our jail," the sheriff said. "I want to see how long it will take for 50 agents from across the country to work in our jails."
The Department of Homeland Security announced Dec. 15 that more than 90 of Arpaio's Maricopa County jail officers could no longer check whether inmates were in the county illegally.