by Kaylee Greenlee
Immigration and Customs Enforcement apprehended over 125 illegal immigrants in California who were released under sanctuary city policies from Sept. 18 to Oct. 3, the Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday.
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation targeted illegal immigrants who were arrested and released by state or local law enforcement agencies, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). More than 95% of the illegal immigrants were previously convicted of a crime or had pending criminal charges for crimes including homicide, sexual assault, sexual offenses against children, and domestic violence.
“Unfortunately, certain local politicians, including many in California continue to put politics over public safety. Instead of fulfilling our shared mission to protect our communities, they would rather play politics with the law by enacting so-called Sanctuary City policies to the detriment of our country’s safety,” DHS Acting Secretary Chad Wolf said, according to the DHS.
DHS slams California officials after arresting 128 illegals, many had prior convictionshttps://t.co/Y9Dr30GFLb
— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 7, 2020
Nationally, nearly 86% of illegal immigrants arrested by ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations in 2019 were convicted criminals or had pending criminal charges, according to the DHS.
“A part of ICE’s mission is to protect the American people and provide security to our communities. We accomplish this when we are partners and not adversaries with our localities,” Senior Official Performing the Duties of the ICE Director Tony H. Pham said, according to the DHS.
“These partnerships allow ICE to secure dangerous criminal aliens prior to their release into the communities thereby reducing the opportunity for recidivist behavior,” Pham added. “Unfortunately, California’s sanctuary laws protect and shield criminal aliens, harboring them in our communities where they can potentially reoffend and revictimize.”
Officers detained around 100 illegal aliens around Los Angeles, California, alone — all of whom had criminal backgrounds, according to the DHS. Under sanctuary policies, ICE officials must apprehend illegal immigrants with criminal histories at-large in the communities rather than in custody.
A partnership between ICE and local law enforcement is crucial to maintain public safety, according to the DHS.
– – –
Kaylee Greenlee is a reporter for the Daily Caller News Foundation.
