NEW YORK (AP)  —
Immigrant advocates say authorities have begun deportation proceedings against
an estimated 13,000 inmates held at the Rikers Island penal complex in New York
City since 2004.

A coalition of immigrant advocacy groups** says they
obtained the data through a Freedom of Information Act request. The data
demonstrate how the city’s Department of Correction works with federal
immigration authorities.

The groups plan to release their findings at a
news conference Tuesday.

The Department of Correction says it gives
information about newly-admitted foreign-born inmates to federal immigration
officers but does not provide information about immigration status.

The
Rikers policy predates a broader federal effort to identify and deport illegal
immigrants in local jails.

**Including Make the Road New York