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By Pete Edwards

The Milwaukee, Wisconsin based Spanish newspaper El Conquistador, has asked

US Attorney, James R. Dedrick to conduct an investigation to the possible violation of Civil Rights by the Bradley County Sheriff's Department, and whether Bradley County Deputy Sheriff Shane McKee should face federal charges for violating Civil Rights and acting as a federal agent of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement when he is not authorized to do so under federal law.

The request was made because the newspaper said that Deputy McKee lacked "Probable Cause" to ask Wenceslao Garcia, a resident of Wisconsin, if he was a US citizen after being stooped on Interstate 75 for a May 13 traffic violation. The newspaper said that Garcia had

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supplied Deputy McKee with a valid Wisconsin drivers license and other documents but refused to answer after he was asked if he was a US citizen.  After Garcia refused to answer, McKee called Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to the scene where Garcia was taken into custody and later deported.

In a twist to the story, Garcia's truck went missing for a while when authorities could find no record of it after Allco Credit Union, the lien holders, authorized Jorge Guzman to travel to Tennessee to repossess the vehicle. Guzman had to return to Wisconsin empty handed but later El Conquistador contacted Bradley County

Sheriff Dan Gilley and he did confirm the 1998 Toyota truck was being stored in a safe place. The truck had been stored for over 67 days and a charge of $110 for towing and a $15 a day storage fee was being accumulated daily, according to the towing company representative. The truck apparently did not appear in the computer system for other law enforcement agencies to locate it.  Lieutenant Brian Quinn from the Bradley County Sheriff's Department said, that Garcia was sent a certified letter in June to his Milwaukee address from the storage company who towed the truck from the highway. He had two months to pick up the truck or it would be auctioned off to pay for the fees. Ironically, Garcia had been deported to Mexico from Tennessee, so could not have received the letter. The truck is valued at more than $5,000. Guzman later returned to Tennessee and after paying the fees repossessed the truck.

In a reply to an inquiry from  H. Nelson Goodson, Managing Editor of the El Conquistador newspaper, Temple Black from the New Orleans office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement that oversees Tennessee, said that ICE agents have the sole authority to enforce immigration laws but state and local law enforcement  could enter into an agreement under Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

It appears that the Bradley County Sheriff's Department and the State of Tennessee have not entered into an agreement or partnership under Section 287(g). It also appears that Deputy McKee is not a designated officer to perform immigration law

enforcement functions, pursuant to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The MOU defines the scope and limitations of the authority to be designated. The MOU requires that local law enforcement officers receive appropriate training and function under the supervision of sworn U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.

The El Conquistador newspaper also notified the FBI of its request for an investigation.

No one at the Bradley County Sheriff's Department could be contacted for comment prior to publication.

Editor's note:
Read the "What do you think?" comment on page 10 under "Who does the US Constitution protect?"
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