Criminal prosecutions for immigration offenses have increased by 65% under the Administration of President Joe Biden, particularly targeting migrants who return to the US after being expelled, according to a report released this Tuesday by Syracuse University.
- Criminal prosecutions for immigration offenses have increased by 65% under the Administration of President Joe Biden, particularly targeting migrants who return to the US after being expelled, according to a report released this Tuesday by Syracuse University.
- The report warns that these increases “may continue” given the DOJ’s announcement last May about stepping up efforts to prosecute immigration-related offenses along the US-Mexico border.
- “These offenses have consistently represented the largest proportion and now account for about two-thirds of all immigration criminal prosecutions,” the report states.
From fewer than 1,500 monthly charges issued by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) in January 2021, cases surged to nearly 3,000 by March 2024, with some fluctuations downward in certain months during that period, according to the analysis by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), a research group at the New York university.
The latest available figures—from February to April 2024—show a 21% increase in charges for immigration-related offenses compared to the same period last year.
The report warns that these increases “may continue” given the DOJ’s announcement last May about stepping up efforts to prosecute immigration-related offenses along the US-Mexico border.
Charges in courts have been recorded in the three analyzed categories: illegal entry into the US, reentry after expulsion or deportation, and charges for knowingly aiding a foreigner to enter or remain in the country illegally.
However, there has been a greater increase in criminal prosecutions against immigrants who reenter the country irregularly after being deported or expelled. Researchers recorded a 57% increase in the first three months of the Biden Administration (February–April 2021) compared to the most recent three-month period (February–April 2024).
“These offenses have consistently represented the largest proportion and now account for about two-thirds of all immigration criminal prosecutions,” the report states.
Most federal charges for immigration offenses occur in the five districts along the US-Mexico border. The Western District of Texas, which includes the cities of El Paso and San Antonio, drove most of the recent increase in the filing of these misdemeanors, followed by Arizona.
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