Illegal immigrants charged with violent crimes and serious felonies
were among the hundreds of criminals the Obama administration
released from jails across the country in February 2013, newly
released documents show.
According to records obtained by
USA Today, the government released inmates
charged with offenses ranging from kidnapping and sexual assault to
drug trafficking, armed assault, and homicide.
The evidence contradicts previous assurances by the administration
that the
617 criminals who were released as part of a
cost-cutting exercise were low-risk offenders charged with
misdemeanors "or other criminals whose prior conviction did not pose
a violent threat to public safety," USA Today reported.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) admitted to the newspaper
that numerous dangerous criminals had been released but denied
direct responsibility.
"Discretionary releases made by ICE were of low-level offenders.
However, the releases involving individuals with more significant
criminal histories were, by and large, dictated by special
circumstances outside of the agency's control," ICE spokeswoman
Gillian Christensen told USA Today.
The new records obtained by the newspaper from a Freedom of
Information Act request outlined previously undisclosed details
about the alleged crimes of specific detainees. One person in Texas
was charged with aggravated kidnapping and sexual assault of a
child.
Another illegal immigrant from Florida was facing charges of
conspiracy to commit homicide, according to USA Today.
Two Massachusetts detainees had been charged with aggravated assault
using a weapon, while another illegal immigrant from Colorado was
being held on a sexual assault charge.
The Obama administration released more than 2,200 illegal immigrants
from jail between Feb. 9 and March 1, 2013, as part of an effort to
cut the number of prisoners due to the budget-sequester funding
cuts. The detainees had been awaiting deportation or immigration
hearings in a court, and the administration did not give advance
notice it would be freeing them.
The releases triggered a furor in Congress and hearings with
lawmakers who grilled then-ICE director John Morton.
According to USA Today, Virginia GOP Rep. J. Randy Forbes asked
Morton directly, "No one on that list has been charged or convicted
with murder, rape, or sexual abuse of a minor, were they?"
Morton, who subsequently resigned, answered, "They were not."
Former White House spokesman Jay Carney had also described the
criminals as "low-risk, noncriminal detainees," USA Today reported.
Meanwhile, Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Tom Coburn of
Oklahoma demanded a formal investigation by the inspector general.
The internal audit, which concluded in August 2014, concluded that
ICE broke the law in releasing the criminal
illegal migrants.
"It is baffling how an agency charged with homeland security and
immigration enforcement would knowingly release hundreds of illegals
with criminal histories. In this single action, ICE undermined its
own credibility, the rule of law, and the safety of Americans and
local law enforcement," Coburn said when the audit was released.
He added, "This report provides more evidence that our nation's
immigration laws are being flagrantly disregarded. Americans need to
be assured the problems within ICE that led to the dangerous release
of illegal aliens will be fixed, and DHS and ICE will never again
violate the law by releasing known criminals into our streets."
McCain said it is "deeply troubling that ICE would knowingly release
thousands of undocumented immigrant detainees many with prior
criminal records into our streets, while publicly downplaying the
danger they posed," USA Today reported.
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