Deportable Aliens Being Released to Work in the U.S.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 15, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A report by the Center for Immigration Studies reveals that illegal aliens in the process of being deported are getting amnestied with little attention, as Congress focuses on the five million illegal alien parents of U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents (LPRs) who, thanks to the president's executive amnesty, are receiving work permits.

Shortly after the president's November announcement of an amnesty, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) offices around the country were directed to start releasing from detention those who the administration no longer considers priorities. And, under current policy, many illegal aliens who have criminal records and/or prior deportations are getting work permits.

View the entire article at: http://cis.org/vaughan/ice-begins-releasing-deportable-aliens-work-us

In just a month, more than 600 detained illegal aliens were freed by the executive action, 200 of whom were in Arizona. These individuals, who may not even have any ties to the U.S. and may have already been order removed by the court, include illegal aliens with pending criminal cases, illegal aliens with criminal charges that were dismissed or dropped (sometimes local prosecutors drop charges because they believe the alien will be deported), and illegal aliens with significant traffic violations (this can include drunk driving, vehicle theft, and hit-and-run).

"It's bad enough that they are letting illegal aliens who are on the verge of deportation walk out of detention, but giving them a work permit is adding insult to the injury to American workers," said Jessica Vaughan, the Center's Director of Policy Studies. "The president has tried to create a stealth amnesty that destroys what little integrity that remains of immigration law. Congress needs to act promptly to rein in the president's cavalier abuse of executive authority."

Instead of enforcing the law, as they have sworn to do, ICE officers now spend time aiding illegal aliens find which of the various executive amnesties they qualify for and responding to grievances.

As in the case of tens of thousands of criminal releases in the past, neither local law enforcement agencies nor the victims are alerted. ICE does keep track of aliens who are released, and can disclose to the public and to local authorities the details on the number of releases, the aliens' criminal histories, the severity of the aliens' crimes, the zip code of the aliens' last known address, the nature of any supervision, and the reason for release — including specification of those aliens released under provisions of the various executive amnesty categories. FOIA requests from the public can be submitted here. Journalists can make requests directly to the ICE Office of Public Affairs, and members of Congress can use the appropriate channels to learn the details on ICE releases in their districts.

The Center for Immigration Studies is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit research organization founded in 1985. It is the nation's only think tank devoted exclusively to research and policy analysis of the economic, social, demographic, fiscal, and other impacts of immigration on the United States.

Contact: Marguerite Telford
[email protected], 202-466-8185

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SOURCE Center for Immigration Studies