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illegal immigration

Texas DPS: Over 443,000 criminal noncitizens booked in Texas jails

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From The Center Square

Charged with 775,000 criminal offenses, 316,000 convictions

Noncitizens, including those in the country illegally, are committing crimes, and they’re being charged, imprisoned and convicted for them in Texas.

A new report by the Texas Department of Public Safety highlights the extent of criminal charges, it says, not “to allege that foreign nationals in the country illegally commit more crimes than other groups” but to identify “thousands of crimes that should not have occurred and thousands of victims that should not have been victimized because the perpetrator should not be here.”

The data, covering roughly 13 years from June 1, 2011, through Sept. 30, 2024, represents “the minimum number of crimes associated with criminal illegal noncitizens” charged with committing state offenses.

The data is broken down into several categories based on Texas’s participation with the Department of Homeland Security’s Secure Communities program, which enables DHS to work with state and local law enforcement to take custody of those posing a danger to public safety.

The program begins at the local level where the offender is arrested and booked by a Texas law enforcement officer. Fingerprints are submitted to Texas DPS and the FBI for criminal history and warrant checks. Biometric data is sent to DHS and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to obtain immigration and removal status.

The data is reported by category: 1) those known to DHS (their fingerprints are in DHS’s database); 2) those who illegally entered the country and evaded capture, known as gotaways, who were later arrested by local or state law enforcement officers for a state offense; 3) those DHS adjudicates in the immigration system held in Texas prisons.

TCS DPS migrant crime data
Historical Arrest and Conviction Data for Select Offenses Associated with Incarcerated Illegal Criminal Noncitizens

In the first category, criminal noncitizens previously known to DHS, more than 443,000 were booked into local Texas jails during the timeframe evaluated. The majority, 314,000, were in the country illegally.

The 314,000 were charged with more than 546,000 criminal offenses, according to the report. They include arrests for homicide (1,011), assault (70,230), burglary (9,787), drugs (63,886), kidnapping (1,292), theft (27,520), obstructing police (42,581), robbery (3,123), sexual assault (6,943), sexual offense (7,953) and weapons (6,748).

These charges resulted in more than 200,000 convictions.

During this timeframe, more than 32,000 in the second category were incarcerated by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Among them, 10,738 weren’t identified through DHS’s Secure Communities program at the time of their arrest.

The 10,738 criminal illegal foreign nationals incarcerated in TDCJ facilities were charged with more than 10,000 criminal offenses, according to the report. They include arrests for homicide (134), assault (1,294), burglary (573), drugs (1,809), kidnapping (57), theft (517), obstructing police (950), robbery (375), sexual assault (834), sexual offense (397), and weapons (244).

These criminal charges resulted in more than 5,000 convictions, according to DPS records.

DPS also notes that the date the criminal noncitizens “were identified as illegal while in prison,” between June 1, 2011, and Sept. 30, 2024, “does not necessarily align with the size of the population of illegal noncitizens identified while in prison. A more accurate assessment can be seen when examining this population’s entire Texas criminal history and not just for offenses committed during this time period.”

DPS also notes that “because individuals identified as being illegally present in the country may have had a Texas criminal history prior to their immigration status being known to law enforcement, DPS has traditionally published criminal history data for a noncitizen’s entire criminal history.”

To provide “a more accurate assessment,” DPS published historical data of the Texas criminal careers of 314,000 illegal foreign nationals, which shows they were charged with more than 755,000 criminal offenses.

These include arrests for homicide (1,608), assault (94,427), burglary (21,008), drugs (91,676), kidnapping (1,645), theft (43,113), obstructing police (63,783), robbery (5,367), sexual assault (9,422), sexual offense (13,052) and weapons (11,422).

These charges resulted in more than 316,000 convictions.

When factoring in the entire Texas criminal careers of the 10,738 illegal foreign nationals incarcerated in TDCJ facilities, the charges increased to more than 48,000 criminal offenses.

DPS also notes that “the criminal activity for individuals identified as illegal while in prison is underrepresented for this time period because they may have been incarcerated during the time frame used in this report.”

The data excludes all federal and other states’ criminal charges. It also excludes foreign nationals lawfully in the U.S. charged with committing state criminal offenses.

Daily Caller

Los Angeles Passes ‘Sanctuary City’ Ordinance In Wake Of Trump’s Deportation Plan

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From the Daily Caller News Foundation 

By Jason Hopkins

The Los Angeles City Council approved an ordinance Tuesday designating the city as a “sanctuary city” following President-elect Donald Trump’s mass deportation plan.

This measure prevents the use of local resources for immigration enforcement and prohibits city agencies from sharing information about undocumented residents with federal immigration authorities, according to The Associated Press. The council voted unanimously, aligning Los Angeles with numerous cities across the U.S. that have adopted similar policies.

The ordinance will undergo a second council vote for procedural reasons as Mayor Karen Bass, who has expressed support for the initiative, holds veto power but is unlikely to use it, AP reported. Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez pointed out the city’s firm stance against cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

“We’re going to send a very clear message that the city of Los Angeles will not cooperate with ICE in any way,” Soto-Martinez said. “We want people to feel protected and be able to have faith in their government and that women can report domestic violence crimes.”

Soto-Martinez also noted that many immigrants without legal status are integral to the community, working in roles such as housekeepers, nannies, and cooks, AP reported. While the ordinance highlights the city’s values, critics argue that Los Angeles already refrains from cooperating with federal immigration agencies, suggesting the policy may not bring significant operational changes.

Trump announced that former acting ICE Director Tom Homan will take on the role of border czar in his upcoming administration. Homan will oversee border operations, including deportations, security at land and sea entry points, and aviation safety measures.

Trump revealed Monday that he plans to declare a national emergency and deploy military resources to execute his mass deportation agenda. He confirmed reports from Judicial Watch’s Tom Fitton, who claimed the administration is ready to use emergency powers to address what he called the “Biden invasion.”

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Daily Caller

“I know three families that have gone to Canada.”: Locals Say Haitians Are Hoofing It Out Of Springfield After Trump Win

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From the Daily Caller News Foundation 

By Jason Hopkins

‘They Are Afraid’

Haitians living in Springfield, Ohio appear to be fleeing the city in droves after President-elect Donald Trump was declared the winner of the election, according to reports from locals.

The national spotlight shined on Springfield, a city of roughly 60,000 residents nestled in central Ohio, for weeks following unverified viral online claims that Haitians migrants had been spotted butchering a pet for consumption. The subsequent uproar about Springfield sparked further media debate about mass migration and its consequences, as Springfield has been dealing with an influx of Haitian migrants in a relatively short amount of time.

“The traffic situation seems to be better now,” longtime resident Barron Seelig said to the Daily Caller News Foundation, referring to widespread accounts from city residents in past months that Haitian drivers are causing mayhem on the roads.

While Seelig did speak about local rumors of impending Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids possibly scaring Haitians away, he also mentioned recent crackdowns by highway patrol officers and added that some migrants are leaving because they don’t enjoy the Ohio winters. Another Springfield local told the DCNF that he heard it was virtually impossible to rent a U-Haul truck because so many Haitians are currently renting them — presumably to leave town.

Those who provide services to immigrant services in the city have also said that Trump’s election victory has prompted Haitians to flee en masse.

“Some folks don’t have credit cards or access to the internet, and they want to buy a bus ticket or a plane ticket, so we help them book a flight,” Margery Koveleski, who helps Haitian migrants manage government bureaucracy, told The Guardian. “People are leaving.”

“People are fully aware of the election result, and that is why they are leaving; they are afraid of a mass deportation” Jason Payen, a co-founder of the Haitian Community Alliance, said to the Guardian.

“Several of my customers have left. One guy with his family went to New Jersey; others have gone to Boston,” Payen continued. “I know three families that have gone to Canada.”

Trump, for his part, has vowed to embark on a border enforcement agenda that will apply to the entire country.

During the campaign, Trump pledged to continue building the U.S.-Mexico border wall, revive the Remain in Mexico program, hire more border patrol agents and conduct the “largest deportation program in American history,” and end birthright citizenship for those born on U.S. soil to illegal migrant parents.

Trump said in October that he would revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian nationals and “bring them back” to the country. The Biden-Harris administration has provided TPS — which temporarily gives deportation protections to its designees — to hundreds of thousands of Haitian nationals currently living in the U.S.

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