- Oct 17, 2011
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Aggressive immigration enforcement opens way for federal criminal defendants to avoid justice
- The aggressive deportation crackdown has created a collision between Trump administration immigration priorities and Department of Justice criminal prosecutions.
- Defense attorneys say the inter-agency failure is allowing criminals to escape accountability, while federal judges warn the practice is violating defendants’ constitutional rights.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers came to Zambrano’s home, removed his ankle monitor [from the criminal case he faced] and took him into custody. The move surprised everyone, including prosecutors. If convicted, Zambrano would have faced deportation after serving a prison sentence.
[But ICE needs those quotas filled now.]
U.S. District Judge Dolly M. Gee dismissed the criminal indictment with prejudice, barring the government from refiling the same charges. Gee cited “an ongoing violation of Zambrano’s right to pretrial release.”
[Another] case drew outrage because the deported man was awaiting trial in what authorities called the largest jewelry heist in U.S. history: an estimated $100-million theft of a Brinks semitruck’s haul. Prosecutors said they were unaware the defendant had been deported to Ecuador and victims were left indignant, as much of the loot has not been recovered.
Federal defense attorneys have filed motions to dismiss indictments, citing difficulties accessing their clients in immigration detention centers and, in at least one case, struggling to locate them at all.
John Sandweg, who served as acting ICE director under President Obama, said there have been cases over the years involving victimless crimes, where authorities opted for deportation instead of a prosecution, finding that “it’s cheaper, easier, it’s better for the taxpayer.”
[Not all judges are automatically dismissing charges. Judge] Kato found that Singh’s placement in immigration detention has not jeopardized the court’s ability to try him. However, she ordered the government to transport Singh to a courthouse to meet with his attorney, Targowski, and warned about the government’s need to address access issues. [But there's a but.]
“I imagine if you continue to have these cases, after the government having been put on notice that this is a problem, dismissals are going to become more frequent and common,” Kato said at the hearing in Riverside.
[Another case - drug and firearms charges]
“So the government basically has no interest, or at least DHS didn’t have any interest, in having him prosecuted for this crime?” [Judge] Vera asked.
“The prosecution team in this case is very interested in prosecuting Mr. Basmadjian,” Galván said.
“I’m sure you are, you’ve put in a lot of work for it,” Vera said.
But he questioned why he shouldn’t dismiss the case, given the fact that Kennedy couldn’t meet with her client. “And that’s not her fault, it’s the government’s fault for moving him,” he said.
He dismissed the case.
[It's not just deportees evading justice. Overtaxing the Justice Department is letting citizen felons skate too.]
See also:
Glut of immigration cases and resignations of federal prosecutors leads to criminals going free
