Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, released information provided by ICE that documents the 2013 release of 169 aliens with homicide-related convictions. The Center for Immigration Studies analyzed the information and produced a map showing where they were booked out of detention facilities in 24 different states. (See here for interactive map.)
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| Map courtesy of the Center for Immigration Studies, based on data from Sen. Grassley's office. |
ICE freed the largest number of convicted killers (48) in the State of California. The city with the largest number freed (7) was Miami, followed by Los Angeles (6).
Sen. Grassley had written ICE seeking more information after the Center issued a report revealing that ICE freed 36,007 aliens with criminal convictions in 2013. ICE provided the Senator information on 169 convicted murderers, and noted it freed 154 because of a court order, leaving nine releases that were at ICE's discretion. According to the Center, that is not consistent with ICE’s initial statement, which said that about one-fourth of the releases were discretionary.
The court order primarily at issue concerns the U.S. Supreme Court case in Zadvydas v. Davis (2001), which ICE uses as justification to release any alien who has not been accepted for deportation to his/her country of origin within six months. Others aliens could have been released if ICE used a Ninth Circuit ruling that allows bond hearings for aliens whose detention lasts for six months. The Center’s analysis says that ICE did not specify how many convicted murderers have been removed from the country. 131 were issued a final order of removal. One was granted voluntary departure and subsequently left the country. The Center says this suggests the rest still remain in the United States.
In releasing the information, Sen. Grassley said, “The public needs to know when a person is in the country illegally, and who has been convicted of a homicide, is released into their communities. We’ve introduced legislation that would reverse the [Zadvydas v. Davis] case that the Obama administration is relying on to excuse its irresponsible release of thousands of criminally convicted aliens.”
The Center’s study includes a list of 134 cities and towns where ICE said it freed convicted murderers in 2013.
