The Political Climate In The U.S. Is Facilitating The Illegal Release Of Tens Of Thousands Of Criminals Every Year.
ICE fails to deport criminal illegal immigrants, but instead releases them into our communities.
On Thursday April 29, 2016 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director Sara Saldana provided written testimony to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee documenting the release of over 86,000 criminal aliens during the past three years.
To better understand these numbers, here are the totals by year:
2013
ICE released 36,007 criminal aliens. Those convictions included 193 homicide convictions, 426 sexual assault convictions, 303 kidnapping convictions, and 1,075 aggravated assault convictions. Records collected as of September 2014, indicate 5,700 of those individuals went on to be convicted of additional crimes within 12-18 months of their release—including terroristic threats, lewd acts with a minor, various types of assault, DUI, robbery, hit-and-run, gang activity, rape, and child cruelty.
2014
ICE released 30,558 criminal aliens who had a combined 79,059 convictions, including 86 homicide convictions, 186 kidnapping convictions, 373 sexual assault convictions, 449 commercialized sexual offenses, 1,194 battery convictions, 1,346 domestic violence convictions, and 13,636 DUIs. Of those 30,558 criminal aliens, 1,895 were charged with another crime within the same year of their release.
2015
ICE released 19,723 criminal aliens with a combined 64,197 convictions, including 934 sex offenses, 804 robberies, 216 kidnappings, and 196 homicide-related convictions.
For those unfamiliar with the law, 8 U.S. Code 1228 requires the “expedited removal of aliens convicted of committing aggravated felonies.” An alien, as described in the law, is a person who was not lawfully admitted for residence or who had conditional residence, at the time of the offense. (An appendix of aggravated felonies is printed at the end of this article.)
A closer look at the report shows that ICE is not the only government body failing to follow the law. A number of municipalities have declared themselves ‘sanctuary cities’ and openly disregard the law. In a large number of cases, ICE did intend to deport a criminal alien, however the state and local law enforcement authorities declined to honor requests by the agency to transfer custody and instead released the prisoner. This required ICE to expend additional resources attempting to locate, apprehend and remove criminal aliens who had already been released into the community.
It is difficult to understand how a government, which is tasked with the safety and security of its tax paying citizenry, would both fail to follow the law and ignore the recidivism rates in these cases. Examining the numbers for 2015, we see that 19,723 criminals were convicted of 64,197 crimes—an average of 3.25 convictions each.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, approximately 71% of violent offenders, 77% of drug offenders, and 82% of property offenders will be arrested for a new crime within five years of their release from prison. Drunk drivers are especially prone to offend repeatedly. According to an FBI statistic cited by Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the average drunk driver has driven drunk 80 times before ever being arrested.
No matter where you are on the political spectrum, we can probably all agree that it is difficult for an undocumented worker to find employment. It stands to reason that with no required documentation for employment and multiple convictions, employment opportunities for these individuals will be further diminished. Does anyone think that these combined circumstances is going to result in a future that departs from past criminal behavioral patterns?
Current estimates gleaned from ICE’s Departures and Detention Report along with analysis from the Center for Immigration Studies suggest that there are an additional 347,698 convicted criminal immigrants at large in the U.S. Some 168,680 of which had final orders of removal but who remained at large, and another 179,018 convicted criminal immigrants with deportation cases pending but who also remained at large.
The current administration claims that it is using ‘prosecutorial discretion’ to prioritize the removal of criminal aliens from this country, but Saldana’s testimony reveals a disturbing truth.
The sanctuary movement leaves American citizens vulnerable to crime at the hands of those who, according to the law, should not remain — proving once again that your safety is your responsibility—because the government is certainly not taking it seriously.
Finally, there are those that will defend this practice and raise questions about the crime rate among the U.S. citizenry (also abysmal). But, the issue here cannot be successfully argued with this line of thinking. The truth is, we have enough crime in the U.S. without breaking the law of the land by the de facto importation of more crime. The political issues with immigration are trumping the law – and putting everyone in more danger.
Aggravated Felonies
A. Murder, Rape, Sexual Abuse of a Minor Offenses
B. Illicit Trafficking in a Controlled Substance, Including a Drug Trafficking Crime
C. Illicit Trafficking in Firearms, Destructive Devices, or Explosive Materials
D. Laundering of Monetary Instruments
E. Explosive Materials and Firearms Offenses
F. Crimes of Violence
G. Theft or Burglary Offenses
H. Crimes Relating to Ransom Demands or Receipt
I. Child Pornography
J. Racketeering and Gambling Offenses
K. Prostitution, Peonage, Slavery, Involuntary Servitude, and Trafficking in Persons
L. Crimes Relating to National Defense Information, Classified Information, Sabotage, Treason, and Protection of Undercover Agents
M. Fraud and Deceit Offenses
N. Alien Smuggling
O. Improper Entry or Reentry by an Alien Deported for an Aggravated Felony
P. Forging, Counterfeiting, Altering Passport or Similar Instrument
Q. Failure to Appear for Service of Sentence
R. Offense of or Relating to Commercial Bribery, Counterfeiting, or Trafficking in Vehicles with Altered ID Number
S. Obstruction of Justice, Perjury, or Subornation
T. Failure to Appear Before a Court to Answer to a Charge of Felony
U. Attempt or Conspiracy to Commit an Aggravated Felony
