ICE deported nearly 400,000 people in last fiscal year

John Morton, the Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), today announced that 396,906 individuals were deported during fiscal year 2011 (October 1, 2010 to September 30, 2011). This is the highest number of deportees in the agency's history.

According to figures from the Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations, 216,698 of these individuals were convicted of committing crimes or offenses. This is an increase of 89% over criminals deported in FY 2008.

ICE says the criminals deported include 1,119 convicted of murder; 5,848 convicted of sex crimes; 44,653 convicted of drug-related crimes; and 35,927 convicted of driving while intoxicated.

According to ICE, 90% of the deportations are part of a priority category. Of the other deportations in 2011, they say more than two-thirds were because the individuals crossed the border recently or because they were repeat offenders of immigration laws.

Morton noted that ICE is complying with the Obama Administration's directives, which stipulate that priority for deportation must be given to those who have violated criminal laws, pose a threat to national security, have just crossed the border illegally, are repeat offenders of immigration laws, or are fugitives from immigration court.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has said that the rising number of deportations shows that her agency is enforcing the law.

According to ICE, 55% of those deported were criminals. That means that the other 45% were not - something that concerns the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), which believe there should be a re-evaluation of the procedure in the selection of aliens to be deported.