TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Kate Prince on Dec 10, 2019

The Knox County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that it doesn’t have a centralized and easily searchable system to track documents related to its participation in ICE’s 287 (g) program, which gives deputies federal authority to detain immigrants who enter the country illegally. During an open records lawsuit today, Knox County Chancellor John Weaver peppered the sheriff’s office with questions about the system and why it’s set up in a way that requires costly and extensive searching to find documents. The lawsuit was filed by University of Tennessee professor Meghan Conley after the sheriff’s office tried charging her for records she requested on the 287 (g) program. The suit was filed under the state’s Sunshine Law and cites roughly a dozen instances in which the sheriff’s office refused to answer Conley’s request for documents. Read more from the Knoxville News Sentinel.