OAKLAND — Alameda County Sheriff Greg Ahern revealed that his department gave federal immigration officials access last year to nearly 1,000 inmates — the majority of them Latino

The disclosure that 386 of those inmates were taken away by Immigration and Custom Enforcement agents drew sharp criticism during a public meeting on Monday. 

Ahern said the number has plummeted this year to 86 since implementing the California Values Act that's more protective of immigrants' privacy.

ICE agents often sought to know the release dates of inmates. Ahern said his department shared the dates, because they're publicly available to anyone, such as the victims of domestic violence or sexual abuse who might want to take precaution. There's no other collaboration with ICE, he said. 

Protesters accused Ahern of upholding a racist and xenophobic policy that discriminates against people of color. 

“When they make ignorant statements like that, I do my best to ignore it, but you know if somebody calls you a racist or a white supremacist, it affects your emotions and feelings. But you know, they’re made from an ignorant point of view,” said Ahern. 

County supervisors will review the policy of posting inmate release dates.

Written by Arooba Kazmi.