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According to Department of Justice (DOJ) data compiled and analyzed by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), criminal prosecution of immigration offenses has declined significantly in the past year. (Breitbart, Jan. 26, 2016) In November 2015, there were 4,861 new immigration prosecutions, reflecting a 13.2 percent drop over the previous month. (Id.) Over the past year, that number is down 22.3 percent. (Id.) The data continues an alarming trend of declining criminal immigration prosecutions, as immigration prosecutions have declined 36.3 percent in the past five years, excluding cases filed in U.S. Magistrate Court (which handles petty offenses).
TRAC also analyzed Department of Homeland Security (DHS) data, which showed a massive drop in detainer requests issued by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). (Washington Examiner, Jan. 25, 2016) A detainer is a request sent by federal officials that asks local officers to maintain custody of a criminal alien for up to 48 hours so federal officials may obtain custody of the criminal alien. There were over 25,000 detainers issued in October 2010. That fell to 7,117 in October 2015, a remarkable 71.6 percent decrease. (Washington Examiner, Jan. 25, 2016) The drop in ICE’s use of detainers is due to the numerous actions that the Obama administration has taken to systematically dismantle immigration enforcement, from reducing the effectiveness of the Secure Communities program to eventually replacing it with the weak Priority Enforcement Program (PEP).
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