New database merges FBI, Homeland Security fingerprint systems

Under the newly merged system, FBI agents can check the fingerprints of criminal suspects against a DHS database, known as IDENT, which contains 1 million fingerprints of illegal immigrants who have been ordered deported by immigration judges.

Mocny said his agency also plans to offer willing police departments access to the database over the next two years.

The Dallas and Boston police departments will be the first two police departments to test out the newly merged system, he said, giving officers the ability to check criminal suspects' fingerprints against those of deported immigrants for the first time.

Most police departments can run only name checks or call a DHS help line to find out if a suspect has been deported previously.

Mocny said he expected the newly merged database to spark a debate among police chiefs "who either have been reticent or just haven't been allowed by their city council or county ward to assist DHS in immigration-related crimes."

"This may show the community that they have a large population of illegal immigrants who have criminal backgrounds," he said.

Even so, Mocny acknowledged his agency could not roll out a system for all major police departments until the system is fully tested because it might overwhelm immigration authorities.

"We've got about 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States," he said. "We want to build up the capacity of how we're going to be able to respond."

Officials with the Boston police departments did not return calls. A spokesman for the Dallas police department said he wasn't aware of the pilot program.

Thomas Frazier, the executive director of the Major Cities Police Chiefs Association, said access to the immigration database will help police officers better identify criminals. However, he predicted that most police officers would not want to become entangled in enforcing immigration laws. Such scrutiny could harm a police department's relationship with immigrant communities and discourage immigrants from reporting crimes, he said.

"Where major city police chiefs are clearly in opposition to the administration is that we're not going to start stopping people on the street and running their fingerprints to check to see if they're illegal immigrants," said Frazier, a former Baltimore police commissioner. "What the federal government wants us to do is turn into an adjunct immigration agency. That's not our job and we don't have the training to do that job."

The system still has weaknesses that could be exploited by criminals or terrorists, some experts said.

Technology experts have concluded the immigration system, IDENT, should be collecting 10 fingerprints per person, instead of only two, to make the most reliable match because some criminals try to avoid detection by wearing down their fingerprints. US-VISIT plans to start using 10 fingerprints over the next two years.

"It will be a great tool for both immigration officers and law enforcement," said Jessica Vaughn, a senior policy analyst for the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington think tank that advocates tougher immigration enforcement. "But it's not enough and it's very belated."

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