U.S Prosecutes More Illegal Immigrants
Sarah Buduson
Reporter, KPHO.com

POSTED: 9:03 pm MST December 23, 2009
UPDATED: 9:14 pm MST December 23, 2009

PHOENIX -- Federal prosecutions of immigration cases surged 16 percent in fiscal year 2009, according to Department of Justice data analyzed by a Syracuse University research center.

Prosecutors filed 91,899 immigration cases between October 2008 and September 2009, according to researchers.

Most cases involve illegal immigrants who agreed to return to Mexico to avoid jail time.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said the federal government is going too easy on people who cross the border illegally.

“You want to be tough on illegal immigration,â€