Nye County Sheriff Sharon Wehrly made a visit to Washington D.C. earlier this week to meet with White House officials on illegal immigration matters.
During Wednesday’s visit, the sheriff was one of a group of authorities who also urged Congress to act on pending legislation to increase border security.
Stated in a news release, Wehrly joined 44 other sheriffs from across the country as a united group of elected law enforcement officers at a media event on Capitol Hill.
Joined by several members of Congress, the group of law enforcement officers was to share its respective experiences and public safety challenges associated with undocumented immigrant criminals and call on Congress to act on pending legislation to increase border security and reform the immigration system.
“The sheriffs will participate in a roundtable discussion at the White House with administration officials and policymakers,” the release stated. “Hosted by the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, the roundtable talks will also focus on immigration, border security and efforts by some elected officials to prevent the critical collaboration of local, county, state and federal law enforcement agencies.
These partnerships maximize law enforcement’s potential to identify criminals in communities and remove them from neighborhoods.”
Wehrly, meanwhile, said one of the main purpose of the visit was to express the urgency of Congress passing legislation immediately on the security aspects of immigration reform.
“It is our intention to tell Congress that their failure to deal with the criminal illegal alien issue for 20 years has made our communities less safe and has undermined our promise to the people who elected us to keep them safe,” she stated in the news release.
Additionally, during her visit to the White House, Wehrly noted that she and other sheriffs also discussed the challenges communities face as a result of the ongoing congressional stalemate, and strategies to more easily identify criminal undocumented immigrants, and explore ways to expand and protect valuable and critically important relationships with local, state and federal law enforcement partners.
“We also took the opportunity to express and thank President Trump and his administration for re-establishing law enforcement’s footing to enforce our laws,” the sheriff said. “America’s sheriffs are elected by the people in their communities to keep them safe, and the continued inaction of Congress has put a major roadblock in law enforcement’s path to protecting our citizens, residents and visitors.
“It is our sworn duty to protect our citizens and visitors, and we, as sheriffs, view this opportunity to push for meaningful criminal alien immigration reform as a way to uphold our promise and our commitment to the people who elected us to protect them,” Wehrly said.
Additional topics of discussion during the visit included problems associated with opioid addiction, land management, along with grazing and water issues with the attending sheriffs, current administration officials and policymakers, the news release stated.
Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @pvtimes.