Alabama officials detained 82 individuals during commercial motor vehicle inspections carried out through a coordinated enforcement effort with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Gov. Kay Ivey announced.
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s (ALEA) Motor Carrier Safety Unit worked with ICE during two targeted strike force operations held Oct. 27–30 and Nov. 16–18, and ICE personnel were also integrated into routine CMV enforcement when available.
Since the partnership launched Oct. 27, ALEA has referred about 242 individuals encountered during inspections to ICE for immigration status checks.
12 did not have driver’s license
Of the 82 detained, 12 had no driver’s license and the remainder held out-of-state licenses.
Ivey said Alabama will hold illegal operators accountable. “Alabama is leading the way when it comes to going after illegal bad actors in trucking,” she said in a news release. “If you are here illegally and breaking our laws or putting folks at risk on our highways, you will be held accountable in our state.”
ALEA concentrated enforcement on high-crash rural interstate corridors with heavy commercial traffic.
Alabama Trucking Association president and CEO Mark Colson said illegal operators are compromising safety and undercutting compliant carriers, and he praised the joint enforcement effort as consistent with the industry’s Trucking Resurgence action plan.
