Deportations Likely to Increase Under New Immigration Priorities

Deportations Likely to Increase Under New Immigration Priorities
Guatemalan immigrants deported from the United States arrive on an ICE deportation flight in Guatemala City, on Feb. 9, 2017. John Moore/Getty Images
Charlotte Cuthbertson
Charlotte Cuthbertson
Senior Reporter
|Updated:

Two new memos from Department of Homeland Security head John Kelly detail how the agency plans to implement President Donald Trump’s executive orders on immigration enforcement.

The memos do not change any immigration laws, but take a clearer stance on enforcement.

Priority for enforcement focuses on convicted criminals, aliens who have been charged with a criminal offense, and those who “pose a risk to public safety or national security,” including individuals involved in espionage and terror-related activities.

In addition, enforcement will focus on aliens who have engaged in fraud or willful misrepresentation in regard to official documentation or status in the United States; any individual who has abused a program related to the receipt of public benefits; and any who have been given notice of deportation but remain in the country.

However, DHS personnel have “full authority to arrest or apprehend an alien whom an immigration officer has probable cause to believe is in violation of the immigration laws,” the DHS states.

DACA

Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly, right, talks with with U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers before a meeting held at the San Isidro Port of Entry, Friday, Feb. 10, 2017, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy, Pool)
Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly, right, talks with with U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers before a meeting held at the San Isidro Port of Entry, Friday, Feb. 10, 2017, in San Diego. AP Photo/Denis Poroy, Pool
Charlotte Cuthbertson
Charlotte Cuthbertson
Senior Reporter
Charlotte Cuthbertson is a senior reporter with The Epoch Times who primarily covers border security and the opioid crisis.
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