Grassley, Sessions Call for Multi-Department Response to Failed Removals
WASHINGTON - One hundred twenty-one convicted criminals who faced deportation orders between 2010 and 2014 were never removed from the country and now face murder charges, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Of them, 33 were released on bond following their original crime at the discretion of the Justice Department's Executive Office of Immigration Review, and 24 were released because ICE was unable to complete the deportation within the legally-required 180 days.
Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and Immigration and The National Interest Subcommittee Chairman Jeff Sessions are asking Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Secretary of State John Kerry and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson to detail what actions will be taken to save American lives from preventable murders committed by individuals who should have been deported. Countless innocent Americans every year are the victims of crime perpetrated by deportable criminals.
In a letter from ICE detailing crimes committed by people after they were released from custody, the agency outlined how criminals may be allowed to walk free despite being in the deportation process. ICE stated that not all people with criminal convictions who are facing deportation proceedings are required to be detained under the law. People ordered to be deported must be released from ICE custody if the deportation isn't completed within 180 days, following the Supreme Court's decision in Zadvydas v. Davis. This can occur if the receiving nation fails to supply the necessary travel documents within the allotted six months.
Grassley and Sessions are asking for an explanation of decisions made by Justice Department officials to release criminals from custody prior to their deportation. They are also asking the three agency leaders to explain how they are working together to improve cooperation by other nations with regard to U.S. efforts to deport individuals with criminal convictions. This could include a review of visa agreements and foreign aid for nations that habitually refuse to cooperate with the United States' deportation processes.
A signed copy of the Grassley-Sessions letter is available here. The letter's text is below.
