Today, Congresswoman Dina Titus of Nevada’s First District sent a letter to the Secretary of Homeland Security, Jeh Johnson, urging him to ensure that Administration policies designed to protect those undocumented immigrants who do not have criminal records from unnecessary detention and deportation are implemented consistently in every community. 

“More than 1000 undocumented immigrants are being deported every day, including many who have no criminal record beyond their immigration offenses,” said Congresswoman Titus. “This is tearing families and communities apart, and is happening despite administrative guidance from the Department of Homeland Security that requires enforcement officials to target violent criminals. Today, I am urging Secretary Johnson to ensure that enforcement officials in Las Vegas and around the country are held accountable for implementing the Department’s policies.”

The text of the letter is below: 

May 22, 2014

The Honorable Jeh Johnson

Secretary

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Washington, D.C. 20528

Dear Secretary Johnson:

As you conduct your review of the Administration’s immigration enforcement policies, I hope that you will consider the need to ensure not only that our deportation policies are humane and targeted toward violent criminals, but that the Department’s guidelines are enforced uniformly across the country. 

In 2010, the Administration announced that it was going to prioritize the deportation of convicted criminals who pose a serious threat to public safety or who endanger national security.  This was followed by an announcement in 2011 that DHS would no longer actively seek to deport undocumented immigrants who do not have criminal records.  

Deportation statistics released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), however, show that of the 368,644 individuals deported in FY2013, only 43,090 had committed serious crimes while 151,834 had not previously been convicted of any crime. In addition, I have heard numerous accounts from individuals in my district about ICE officials in Nevada who are not appropriately applying the guidelines set forth by DHS, resulting in the detainment and deportation of individuals who have not committed serious crimes. 

I believe that it is critical that the Administration act to ensure that families and communities are not unnecessarily divided while Congress considers federal immigration reform legislation.  This requires not simply further expanding the use of prosecutorial discretion to target only those who have committed serious crimes, but also ensuring that local DHS and ICE officials are held accountable for implementing these policies in every community. 

Congress must act to fix our broken immigration system by passing comprehensive immigration reform, but until we do, I hope that you will work to guarantee that local enforcement officials are following federal guidelines designed to protect undocumented individuals who pose no threat to public safety and are vital members of our families and our communities. 

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Dina Titus

Member of Congress