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In 2013, New Mexico saw a 46 percent increase in federal prosecutions of immigration offenses. At the time, that was the fastest growth of any of the nation’s 94 judicial districts, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, a nonpartisan center based at Syracuse University that tracks enforcement by the federal government.
At the time, the U.S. Department of Justice prosecuted 5,999 immigrants in New Mexico. That was fourth-highest in total immigration prosecutions, behind the Southern District of Texas (Houston) with 31,000, the Western District of Texas (San Antonio) with 22,970 and Arizona with 21,000, according to the report.
For May 2015, a report by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse says that New Mexico ranks third with 277 prosecutions, behind the Southern District of Texas with 434 and the Western District of Texas with 367.
As for the report alleging federal agencies have colluded with anti-immigration groups, government employees were mum on the accusation.
A spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement didn’t return messages seeking comment. In an email, Customs and Border Protection spokeswoman Jenny Burke declined to directly answer a question about the report’s allegations.
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