Law Enforcement And The INS ─ A Participant Observation Study Of Control Agents

This study utilizes the perceptions of criminal investigators of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to describe the normative structure of an organization in its social context. The legacy INS attempted to provide both a service and control function. This dual mandate made it difficult for INS investigators to fulfill their mission of interior enforcement of the immigration laws. Other problems included organizational relations, as well as notions about professionalism, which affected recruitment, retention, training, and worker expectations. On March 1, 2003, the INS separated its dual mandate and moved to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with the intent of solving some of these problems. As a result, one might assume that the fundamental contradiction imposed by the dual-mandate structure would be resolved. The updated material in this edition discusses that prospect and includes statistical analyses of a sample of apprehended aliens, as well as the Survey of Inmates from the Bureau of Justice Statistics for information on foreign-born criminals. The data file on apprehended aliens is available for download for purchasers of the book. Current interior enforcement strategies are discussed in an interview with the Special Agent in Charge of the New York DHS office.

George J. Weissinger is Associate Professor of Criminal Justice at Briarcliffe College, Bethpage, New York. Professor Weissinger earned his doctorate in sociology from New York University and was a former criminal investigator with the INS (1974-1985) and Sr. US Parole Officer supervising organized crime offenders (1985-1998).