DHS: Dozens of MS-13, Other Gang Members Released by Sanctuary Cities

More than 100 suspected members of MS-13 and other gangs were released in 2017 by sanctuary jurisdictions even though federal authorities had formally requested that they be held, according to data from the Department of Homeland Security.

Between October 2016 and June 2017, local law enforcement agencies released 142 gang members that immigration authorities were seeking to deport instead of transferring them to federal custody. The prisoners were subjects of active immigration detainers, which are formal requests made by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to local authorities to hold criminal aliens until federal agents can pick them up.

The releases occurred in 37 separate jurisdictions, according to a Center for Immigration Studies report on the data, which was compiled in response to a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the rise of MS-13. {snip}

About two-thirds of the releases occurred in California, which has a statewide sanctuary law that limits cooperation between local officials and immigration authorities. Santa Clara County led the way with 22, followed by Los Angeles County with 16 and Orange County with 10.

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Notably, 15 of the alien gang members documented in the ICE data were members of MS-13, the ultra-violent transnational gang composed largely of immigrants from Central American countries. As the CIS report notes, five of the MS-13 members were released by Montgomery County and four by Prince George’s County. Both counties are in suburban Washington, D.C., which has seen a disturbing rise in MS-13 activity, including multiple brutal murders.

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