TALLAHASSEE, Fla., March 4 (UPI) -- Florida officials are working on agreements with the federal government to give selected state law enforcement officers power to make arrests for violation of federal law in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
In some cases people have had to be released because federal immigration officers couldn't get there in time.
Immigration and Naturalization Service agents are the only officers with power to arrest undocumented aliens, but they have more cases than they can handle. The states want to help solve the deficiency.
In Florida last month, police stopped a U-Haul truck entering the state with 26 people inside. Police called the INS but those agents never showed up and the people were released.
Florida is trying to become the first state with the unusual arrest authorities.
Steve Lauer, Florida's new chief of domestic security, told the St. Petersburg Times officials have been working on the arrangement since Sept. 11. It was learned shortly after the attacks that 13 of the 19 terrorists aboard the four hijacked planes had lived in Florida, at least for a brief period.
Lauer said the number of officers is small, but would allow the state to get information about terrorism or even arrest terrorists.
"It's not intended for run-of-the-mill arrests. It would solely be related to domestic security," Lauder said.
Approval isn't expected for a few weeks, and agents would have to undergo at least four weeks of training before the program goes into effect.
The INS has 1,500 employees in Florida, but not all of them have arrest powers. Most of the agents who can make arrests are based in Miami.
Florida officials said Monday seven other states were working on a similar arrangement, but they did not have a list of them.
