ICE Increased Deportation Efforts Mainly Capture Immigrants With No Criminal Record

Several newspapers are reporting on statistics released by ICE for their federal fiscal year that ran from October 2007 to September 2008.

The newspapers report that ICE's statistics show that the number of immigrants they arrested in New Jersey and deported rose from 3,339 to 4,194 (a 25% increase) and that of those, around 70% did not have any criminal history. (Nationally, there was a 20% increase to 349,000.)

In New England, around 72% of those deported had no criminal history and Eva Millona of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition told the Boston Globe that the high percentage of those with no criminal history shows that ICE is apprehending more ordinary workers than criminals so the resources are not going to where they are supposed to be going.

ICE officials noted that it had more than 100 futigive operations teams around the country, with the number of teams in NJ increasing from four to five (accounting for 2,210 arrests, up from 2,079). Nationally, the number of fugitive operations teams has increased from 18 in September 2005 to 50 in September 2006 to 75 in September 2007 to over 100 in September 2008.