According to data provided to Congress by ICE, more than 13,000 immigrants convicted of homicide, either in the U.S. or abroad, are living freely in the United States outside of detention. These immigrants are part of ICE’s “non-detained” docket, meaning they have pending immigration cases but are not currently in detention. The data was sent by Acting ICE Director P.J. Lechleitner in response to a request from Congressman Tony Gonzales of Texas.
Many of these immigrants crossed into the U.S. under previous administrations, including former President Donald Trump’s. Trump used this data to criticize Vice President Kamala Harris for current immigration policies during a recent campaign stop. The White House has not yet commented on the data, and the release of it came as a surprise to officials.
ICE prioritizes migrants convicted of serious crimes, such as homicide, for arrest, but their limited resources make it challenging to locate and arrest all of them. Some immigrants may have never had contact with ICE, while others may have been released by state and local officials after serving their time without ICE being notified. This lack of communication complicates efforts to detain and deport these individuals.
More local jurisdictions are starting to rethink their sanctuary policies in light of increased attention on migrant crime, leading to more cooperation with ICE. Despite the challenges, ICE agents continue to work to locate and arrest convicted criminals living at large, requiring a significant amount of manpower.
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