Documents Confirm Obama Administration’s ‘Catch and Release’ Immigration Policy

Well, what do you know. Obama administration officials at the Department of Homeland Security deliberately misled Congress when they denied using “selective enforcement” to deport convicted criminals in the U.S. illegally. Their much-criticized “catch and release” policy was confirmed by documents obtained by Judicial Watch under the Freedom of Information Act.

The documents “show that the Obama administration is implementing ‘stealth amnesty’ which is an end-run around the rule of law and Congress,” said Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton.

Contrary to administration claims that convicted criminals were being deported just as fast as DHS got them, the released documents show that local immigration officials were in fact being given what Judicial Watch describes as “wide latitude” to dismiss federal immigration charges–even against criminals convicted of violent crimes such as sexual assault, solicitation of murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault, drug possession and assaulting a police officer.

They were then released back into the same American communities they violated, where they were free to prey on new victims.

{snip}

Another example: ICE officials in Pennsylvania advised police to release three illegal immigrants charged with speeding, driving without a license, insurance or registration under false identification.

This is strikingly similar to ICE’s refusal to deport Carlos Martinelly-Montano, who was subsequently charged with killing one nun and critically injuring two others last August in Prince William County in a drunk driving accident. Martinelly-Montano was allowed to remain in the U.S. despite two previous DUI convictions.

{snip}