Targeting criminal aliens for removal

By John Morton

Earlier this month in San Pablo, Calif., a drunken driver struck and killed a man who was on his way home from Bible study. In Fairfax, Va., a man was arrested for soliciting a prostitute. In Starr County, Texas, a man was arrested for assault causing bodily injury. All three of these criminals share something in common — they are not citizens of the United States and are subject to removal.

All three, like thousands of others, were identified by their fingerprints at the time local law enforcement officers booked them and charged them with a crime. The fingerprint technology was provided through a program of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) known as “Secure Communities.”

This technology allows local officers to automatically check the criminal and immigration status of all people booked on crimes. Thus, officers are not left to speculate who may or may not be an alien. All people are fingerprinted no matter where they are born, no matter what their citizenship and at little to no cost to local law enforcement. Because every person’s fingerprints are checked — whether citizen, lawful permanent resident or person with no lawful immigration status — the program is not subject to racial profiling or prejudice.

We are a nation of immigrants, and a nation of laws. Secure Communities allows us to identify people who are both here unlawfully and engaging in crime while here. The drunken driver arrested in California had multiple prior DUI convictions. Now, he has been charged with murder, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, hit and run and driving on a suspended license.

The man soliciting a prostitute in Virginia had a prior conviction for an aggravated felony and had been arrested or encountered by local law enforcement 13 times under multiple aliases.

The man arrested in Texas for assault had a prior murder conviction. Now, thanks to the Secure Communities program, all will be removed from the country after they serve any criminal sentence in jail.

ICE is focusing on identifying aliens convicted of crimes who should not be released back into our communities. Our highest priority is convicted criminals who pose the greatest threat to our communities — people convicted of homicide, rape, kidnapping, robbery and major drug offenses.

Since beginning the program in October 2008, ICE has deployed the fingerprint technology to more than 165 jurisdictions across 20 states. We deploy to more places every week. As a result, we have removed more than 33,000 aliens convicted of crimes — aliens who may have otherwise been released back onto our streets and into our neighborhoods.

As ICE expands this program nationwide, we meet regularly with local law enforcement agencies, national and local nongovernmental organizations, media and others to ensure the public understands that ICE is using this race-neutral program to identify and remove criminal aliens, thereby relieving the burden on state and local governments.

Like members of Congress and Secretary Janet Napolitano, I see the removal of criminal aliens as a top priority to secure the nation and protect public safety. In a world of limited resources, ICE must make difficult choices about how to direct resources. The decision to focus on criminal aliens using race-neutral methods, however, is an easy one. We will continue to enforce immigration law in a fair and efficient manner to identify and remove criminal aliens. The goal is to best promote public safety and the security of your communities.

John Morton is assistant secretary of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.