From time to time my office distributes press releases and written statements on state and national issues, debate in the Senate, and legislation that I am working on. For your convenience, I post these documents on my site for your review.
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Senate Clears Sessions’ Amendment to Fund Expansion of Zero Tolerance Prosecution Policy at the Southern Border
The amendment was accepted unanimously to the fiscal year 2008 Commerce, Justice and Science appropriations bill.
Sessions’ amendment requires that DOJ use $10,000,000 from its working capital fund to expand Operation Streamline, the zero tolerance policy of arresting, prosecuting and expeditiously removing illegal aliens, rather than simply sending them back across the border after they are apprehended. Operation Streamline began in 2005 in the Del Rio, Texas sector of the border and was later instituted in the Yuma, Arizona sector.
The amendment designates an incremental expansion of the program across the southwest border of the United States, beginning with the border sector that had the highest rate of illegal entries last year.
“Although illegal entry into our country is clearly a crime, many illegal aliens are not prosecuted for their offenses,” said Sessions. “By implementing a zero tolerance policy, we will send the clear message that the United States will not tolerate illegal border crossings, and every offender will be prosecuted under federal law. More importantly, I strongly believe that these prosecutions will send an important message that catch and release has ended, and that there will be consequences for violating immigration laws.”
Since the implementation of Operation Streamline, of the 19,471 illegal aliens apprehended in Del Rio last year, 18,952 were convicted of a crime and sentenced. Furthermore, arrests in fiscal year 2007 have decreased by 50 percent in Del Rio and 68 percent in Yuma. Declines in arrest rates typically indicate an overall decline in attempted illegal crossings.
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