Two immigration news stories this week seemed to collide head-on. In one, reported by USA Today, federal records show that arrests of undocumented immigrants who do not have criminal records is at a record pace.
The newspaper reported that “18 percent of all arrests were of people who were simply undocumented and had committed no other crimes.” U.S. Immigration and Enforcement agents make the arrests.
In the other story, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol released more than 1,000 undocumented immigrants in McAllen, Texas, saying it did not have room for them.
The Rio Grande Guardian reported that the immigrants were being released as Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen was in McAllen for a news conference.
The Guardian wrote, “Civil rights groups say they have noticed a sharp drop in the migrants appearing in court, suggesting the asylum seekers have been held back for release all at once into the community.” Nielsen disputed claims that her new guidelines were a return to a “catch and release” or questions whether the releases were a manufactured crisis on the southern border.
If you have questions about what’s going on with immigration, we suggest “100 Questions and Answers About Immigrants to the U.S.“
