Menino threatens to quit plan targeting crime by immigrants

Brendan Ryan, a spokesman for Patrick, said the governor stands by his previous criticisms of the Secure Communities program.

“This doesn’t really change anything for us,’’ Ryan said.

Last month, Patrick said he would no longer support the program because he believed it caused more harm than good by fracturing relationships between police and community members. “We give up more than we get,’’ he said. Patrick became the third governor, after Andrew Cuomo of New York and Pat Quinn of Illinois, to refuse to enforce Secure Communities.

Chuck Jackson, a spokesman with ICE, said last night by e-mail that the organization will “respond directly’’ to any local officials who express concerns about the program. ICE, he said, has made plans to improve the Secure Communities program, including the creation of an advisory board that will determine ways to best target those who pose a threat to their community.

“ICE seeks to enforce our nation’s immigration law in a smart and effective manner that best promotes public safety, border security, and the integrity of the immigration system,’’ Jackson said.

Patricia Montes, executive director of Centro Presente, a Somerville-based immigrant rights organization, was one of the officials who participated in a roundtable discussion with Menino about Secure Communities. She said she was pleased by Menino’s stance.

“I’m glad to hear he is going to complain about this program,’’ Montes said. “It’s unnecessary. It’s a program to criminalize and intimidate immigrants who don’t have proper documents. We are not against deporting criminals. The problem is they are also deporting people without criminal records.’’

Laura Rotolo, a staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts said, while she had not seen the mayor’s letter, she applauded his assessment of the Secure Communities program.