TRAC Report: Only 8.3% of all Pending Deportation Cases Involve Criminal Aliens

Syracuse University's TRAC Immigration has issued another report finding that only 8.3% of all pending deportation proceedings involve immigrants with criminal convictions. TRAC also reports that by the end of September 2011, the number of pending deportation cases has reached record levels.

There are now 297,551 pending deportation cases nationwide, and the backlog keeps on growing (up 4.2% since July 2011). This is a 60% increase from what was seen in George W. Bush's last year in office.  

The chart below was prepared by TRAC and illustrates the exponential growth of the backlog of pending deportations since Obama took office.

Here are some of the other findings of TRAC's report:

• The number of pending deportation cases involving criminal aliens is down from what was seen at the end of fiscal year 2010.
• 90% of pending deportation cases only involve individuals charged with mere immigration violations (i.e., overstaying a visa). 
• Pending cases only involving immigration violations has increased from 236,415 at the end of FY 2010 to 259,038 at the end of July 2011.
• It is now taking an average of 497 days to complete deportation proceedings for individuals charged with mere immigration violations. 
• It is now taking 410 days to resolve pending deportation cases for individuals charged with criminal grounds of removal.  

So the rhetorical question becomes: who should we believe?

The Obama administration who claims that more than half of the people deported last year have been convicted of crimes, or a non-partisan University who analyzes the raw data that shows that 90% of all pending cases do not invovle criminal grounds of removal? 

I'm just going to hazard a guess that the Obama administration's misrepresentation (AKA lies) are directly correlated to the fact that 59% of all Latinos oppose Obama's handling of deportations.

Wouldn't it be nice if our elected officials actually told the truth for once.

The audacity of hope.

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Comments

[Steve in VA]

5 DUI convictions = 5 criminal convictions = no grounds of inadmissibilty/deporations.

[Matthew Kolken]

Steve in VA,

"No - report found that 8.3% of all pending removal proceedings involve criminal grounds of inadmissibility or deportation."

Generally, for an individual to be charged with a criminal ground of removal they must have a "conviction" as defined in 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(48).

The Act defines “conviction” as: a formal judgment of guilt of the alien entered by a court or, if adjudication of guilt has been withheld, where (i) a judge or jury has found the alien guilty or the alien has entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere or has admitted sufficient facts to warrant a finding of guilt, and (ii) the judge has ordered some form of punishment, penalty, or restraint on the alien's liberty to be imposed.

In sum, a mere criminal charge or uncharged criminal activity, absent a formal adjudication of guilt, and the imposition of some form of punishment does not generally render an individual removable (inadmissible or deportable).

For the purpose of this conversation I'm not going to go into the exceptions to the general rule relating to grounds of inadmissibility due to an admission of a crime without a conviction, acts of terrorism, or security related grounds of removal.

Suffice it to say that I used the term "criminal convictions" to get the point across that only 8.3% of all pending removal cases involve individuals with criminal grounds of removal stemming from a formal adjudication of guild entered by a criminal court.

As this is a blog, and is read by both lawyers, and non, I don't always like to get weighed down by using the exact terms of art, and take a bit of creative license for the sake of simplicity.

In any event, thank you for your snarky comment.

[Steve in VA]

"Syracuse University's TRAC Immigration has issued another report finding that only 8.3% of all pending deportation proceedings involve immigrants with criminal convictions."

No - report found that 8.3% of all pending removal proceedings involve criminal grounds of inadmissibility or deportation. Big difference. For the sake of your clients, I hope you understand the difference between a criminal conviction and a criminal ground of inadmissibility/deportation.