FY 2012: ICE announces year-end removal numbers
I.C.E.News Release
December 21, 2012
Washington, DC
FY 2012: ICE announces year-end removal numbers, highlights focus on key priorities and issues new national detainer guidance to further focus resources
WASHINGTON – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director John Morton today announced the agency's fiscal year (FY) 2012 year-end removal numbers, highlighting trends that underscore the administration's focus on removing from the country convicted criminals and other individuals that fall into priority areas for enforcement. To further focus ICE resources on the most serious criminal offenders, ICE today also issued new national detainer guidance. This guidance limits the use of detainers to individuals who meet the department's enforcement priorities and restricts the use of detainers against individuals arrested for minor misdemeanor offenses such as traffic offenses and other petty crimes, helping to ensure that available resources are focused on apprehending felons, repeat offenders and other ICE priorities. It is applicable to all ICE enforcement programs, including Secure Communities.
"Smart and effective immigration enforcement relies on setting priorities for removal and executing on those priorities," said Director Morton. "In order to further enhance our ability to focus enforcement efforts on serious offenders, we are changing who ICE will issue detainers against. While the FY 2012 removals indicate that we continue to make progress in focusing resources on criminal and priority aliens, with more convicted criminals being removed from the country than ever before, we are constantly looking for ways to ensure that we are doing everything we can to utilize our resources in a way that maximizes public safety."
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano has directed ICE to focus its resources on key priorities in all aspects of its immigration enforcement efforts. ICE's implementation of this directive includes today's new national detainer policy, as well as the continued use of investigations and programs like Operation Cross Check that target criminal aliens and ICE's expanded collaboration with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to remove recent border crossers.
ICE priorities include the identification and removal of those that have broken criminal laws, threats to national security, recent border crossers and repeat violators of immigration law. Overall, in FY 2012 ICE's Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations removed 409,849 individuals. Of these, approximately 55 percent, or 225,390 of the people removed, were convicted of felonies or misdemeanors – almost double the removal of criminals in FY 2008. This includes 1,215 aliens convicted of homicide; 5,557 aliens convicted of sexual offenses; 40,448 aliens convicted for crimes involving drugs; and 36,166 aliens convicted for driving under the influence.
ICE continues to make progress with regard to other categories prioritized for removal. Some 96 percent of all ICE's removals fell into a priority category – a record high.
To support DHS' efforts to secure our nation's borders, ICE prioritizes the identification and removal of recent border crossers and conducts targeted enforcement operations with the U.S. Border Patrol. The historic results along the Southwest Border are attributable to the joint efforts of U.S. Border Patrol agents and ICE officers and agents, and the emphasis ICE places on the removal of recent border crossers.
As part of the effort to ensure that the immigration system can focus its resources on priority cases, ICE has also implemented policies and processes that ensure that those enforcing immigration laws make appropriate use of the discretion they have in deciding the types of individuals prioritized for removal from the country.
In addition, ICE has also decided not to renew any of its agreements with state and local law enforcement agencies that operate task forces under the 287(g) program. ICE has concluded that other enforcement programs, including Secure Communities, are a more efficient use of resources for focusing on priority cases.
ICE will continue to analyze its policies and the results of its programs, making improvements where necessary to meet our priorities.
Visit our immigration enforcement Web page for more information.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security.
ICE is a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities. For more information, visit www.ICE.gov. To report suspicious activity, call 1-866-347-2423 or complete our tip form.
http://www.ice.gov/news/releases/1212/121221washingtondc2.htm
Obama administration sets deportation record
By Stephen Dinan
The Washington Times
Friday, December 21, 2012
The Obama administration deported a record 409,849 illegal immigrants in the last fiscal year, with the majority of them convicted criminals, according to statistics released Friday.
It also released a new policy ordering agents not to go after illegal immigrants convicted of crimes unless they have committed at least three misdemeanors — and said that minor misdemeanors shouldn’t count.
The increase in deportations comes even as President Obama has rewritten immigration priorities and tried to make sure rank-and-file illegal immigrants, particularly those brought to the U.S. as children, are not deported.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency responsible for deportations, said 96 percent of all deportations were in key priority categories in fiscal year 2012, which ended Sept. 30.
“Smart and effective immigration enforcement relies on setting priorities for removal and executing on those priorities,” said ICE Director John Morton.
Mr. Obama instituted a new policy Aug. 15 that orders authorities not to deport most illegal immigrants brought here as children, and it follows on earlier orders to try to focus only on dangerous criminals and repeat immigration law violators.
That order dramatically changed the composition of deportations. Before Aug. 25, about 52 percent of all deportations were convicted criminals, but over the final 36 days of the fiscal year 78 percent of all deportations were convicted criminals.
The statistics were released two months later than usual.
No explanation was given for the delay, but Mr. Morton released new guidance along with the deportation numbers that tells ICE agents to avoid going after even more categories of rank-and-file illegal immigrants. That guidance could assuage the concerns of immigrant-rights groups who say the Obama administration is deporting too many people.
Among the new rules is that ICE agents should wait until an illegal immigrant has three or more misdemeanor convictions before being picked up — and traffic offenses don’t count.
“Given limited enforcement resources, three or more convictions for minor traffic misdemeanors or other relatively minor misdemeanors alone should not trigger a detainer unless the convictions reflect a clear and continuing danger to others or disregard for the law,” Mr. Morton said in the new memo.
The Obama administration says given the resources ICE has, it can deport about 400,000 immigrants per year.
The 409,849 deported in 2012 is a 3 percent increase from 2011.
Obama administration sets deportation record - Washington Times
