More than one million aliens were expelled from CBP field offices in 2003. (See Table 5.4.) The majority (887,115) were voluntary removals compared to 186,151 formal removals, including deportations and exclusions. Given the high volume of migrant traffic along the Southwest border, it was no surprise that the San Diego, California, and Phoenix, Arizona, offices had the greatest number of removals. The Phoenix field office processed 44% (395,757) of all voluntary departures and 17.5% (32,609) of all formal removals.
Customs and Border Patrol FY 2004 Activities
In a January 11, 2005, press release ("Border Agency Reports First-Year Successes," http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/press_releases/0012005/01112005.xml), the CBP reported that 428 million passengers and pedestrians were processed and cleared through U.S. air, land, and sea ports of entry during FY 2004. A total of 121 million privately owned vehicles entered the United States—91 million at the U.S.–Mexico border and 30 million at the U.S.–Canada border. CBP officers processed more than 262 million aliens at U.S. ports of entry. Of that number, 643,091 were deemed inadmissible under U.S. laws, including 19,740 criminal aliens. Since new fingerprint matching systems were installed on the Mexican and Canadian borders, arrests of criminals and criminal suspects attempting to enter the country jumped from 2,612 in FY 2002 to 29,501 in FY 2004. In tallying its successes, the CBP noted that officers at ports of entry arrested 6,709 persons on drug-related charges and 7,516 on outstanding state or federal warrants, a 41% increase over FY 2003. They also intercepted 566 stowaways. Nationwide, Border Patrol agents arrested 1,158,800 illegal aliens, including 643 special interest aliens, and intercepted 78,255 fraudulent documents.
TABLE 5.3
Border patrol activities, 1997–2003
| Activities and accomplishments | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 |
| Persons processed by the border patrola | 1,422,829 | 1,566,984 | 1,591,969 | 1,689,195 | 1,277,576 | 967,044 | 946,684 |
| Deportable aliens located by the border patrol | 1,412,953 | 1,555,776 | 1,579,010 | 1,676,438 | 1,266,213 | 955,310 | 931,557 |
| Mexican aliens | 1,387,650 | 1,522,918 | 1,534,515 | 1,636,883 | 1,224,046 | 917,994 | 882,012 |
| Working in agriculture | 3,521 | 3,270 | 1,599 | 1,330 | 1,248 | 1,821 | 1,908 |
| Working in trades, crafts, industry, and service | 10,146 | 6,616 | 2,383 | 2,167 | 2,678 | 2,897 | 3,856 |
| Seeking employment | 1,279,923 | 1,398,892 | 1,422,970 | 1,525,422 | 1,107,550 | 822,161 | 810,671 |
| Canadian aliens | 2,935 | 2,329 | 2,724 | 2,211 | 2,539 | 1,836 | 1,611 |
| All others | 22,368 | 30,529 | 41,771 | 37,344 | 39,628 | 35,480 | 47,934 |
| Smugglers of aliens located | 12,523 | 13,908 | 15,755 | 14,406 | 8,720 | 8,701 | 11,128 |
| Aliens located who were smuggled into the United States | 124,605 | 174,514 | 221,522 | 236,782 | 112,927 | 68,192 | 110,605 |
| Seizures (conveyances) | 11,792 | 14,401 | 16,803 | 17,269 | 5,892 | 7,250 | 9,355 |
| Value of seizures (millions of dollars) | 1,095 | 1,405 | 2,004 | 1,945 | 1,581 | 1,564 | 1,168 |
| Narcotics | 1,046 | 1,340 | 1,919 | 1,848 | 1,519 | 1,499 | 1,608 |
| Other | 49 | 64 | 86 | 97 | 62 | 65 | 72 |
| *Includes deportable aliens located and non-deportable (e.g., U.S. citizens). | |||||||
| Note: Data for aliens previously expelled, aliens located with previous criminal records, and conveyances examined are not available starting in fiscal year 1990. Data for narcotics for fiscal year 1995 and for other for 1992–94 and 1996–97 have been revised. | |||||||
TABLE 5.4
Aliens expelled by field office, fiscal year 2003
| Field office | Formal removalsa | Voluntary departuresb |
| All field offices | 186,151 | 887,115 |
| Atlanta, GA | 3,647 | 1,918 |
| Baltimore, MD | 4,546 | 416 |
| Boston, MA | 1,979 | 2,379 |
| Buffalo, NY | 1,366 | 375 |
| Chicago, IL | 5,279 | 1,404 |
| Dallas, TX | 5,378 | 2,966 |
| Denver, CO | 4,027 | 2,914 |
| Detroit, MI | 1,500 | 1,695 |
| El Paso, TX | 11,431 | 93,811 |
| Houston, TX | 11,144 | 1,759 |
| Los Angeles, CA | 13,116 | 6,435 |
| Miami, FL | 7,695 | 6,074 |
| New Orleans, LA | 4,339 | 552 |
| New York, NY | 2,877 | 162 |
| Newark, NJ | 3,162 | 271 |
| Phoenix, AZ | 32,609 | 395,757 |
| San Antonio, TX | 15,372 | 165,005 |
| San Diego, CA | 40,325 | 195,678 |
| San Francisco, CA | 7,355 | 3,625 |
| Seattle, WA | 4,321 | 2,249 |
| St. Paul, MN | 3,342 | 1,408 |
| Washington, DC | 1,341 | 262 |
| aFormal removals include deportations, exclusions, and removals. | ||
| bVoluntary departures include aliens under docket control required to depart and voluntary departures not under docket control. | ||
Source Countries of Apprehended Aliens
According to the 2002 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Office of Immigration Statistics, October 2003), in FY 2002 nationals of 186 countries were apprehended by the INS. Almost all of those arrested were from Mexico (94%). The next largest source countries were Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Brazil, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, the People's Republic of China, Jamaica, Colombia, Pakistan, Haiti, and Ecuador. However, the INS counted apprehensions, not individuals. Many of those apprehended and returned to Mexico would return to the border to attempt to cross again. According to U.S. Border Patrol statistics reported in a USA Today article ("Despite New Technology Border Patrol Overwhelmed," http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-02-22-borderpatrol_x.htm, March 22, 2005), 1,073,468 persons from Mexico were caught illegally crossing the southwestern border in 2004, compared to 865,850 the previous year. The number of persons from countries other than Mexico who were caught trying to cross the southwestern border totaled 65,814 in 2004, up from 39,215 in 2003.
Removal of Illegal Aliens
Noncriminal aliens apprehended while attempting illegal entry into the United States are offered voluntary departure. If they accept, they waive their right to a hearing and are supposed to leave the country under supervision. Aliens who are apprehended after entering the United States could also be allowed to depart voluntarily. In both cases, an immigration judge or a DHS Field Office Director grants permission to depart. The Office of Immigration Statistics reported that most voluntary departures (99%) involve aliens apprehended and quickly removed by the Border Patrol (2003 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Office of Immigration Statistics, September 2004).
TABLE 5.5
Aliens removed, by administrative reason for removal, fiscal years 1991–2003
| Year | Total | Attempted entry without proper documents or through fraud or misrepresentation | Criminal | Failed to maintain status | Previously removed ineligible for reentry | Present without authorization* | Security | Smuggling or aiding illegal entry | Other | Unknown |
| 1991 | 33,189 | 3,058 | 14,475 | 1,135 | 735 | 13,347 | 7 | 28 | 191 | 213 |
| 1992 | 43,671 | 3,630 | 20,098 | 1,076 | 1,008 | 17,403 | 31 | 177 | 57 | 191 |
| 1993 | 42,542 | 2,968 | 22,470 | 783 | 913 | 15,018 | 54 | 208 | 95 | 33 |
| 1994 | 45,674 | 3,482 | 24,581 | 716 | 1,052 | 15,500 | 57 | 218 | 51 | 17 |
| 1995 | 50,924 | 5,822 | 25,684 | 611 | 1,432 | 17,069 | 34 | 196 | 63 | 13 |
| 1996 | 69,680 | 15,412 | 27,655 | 708 | 2,005 | 23,522 | 36 | 275 | 49 | 18 |
| 1997 | 114,432 | 35,737 | 34,113 | 1,031 | 3,302 | 39,297 | 30 | 385 | 522 | 15 |
| 1998 | 173,146 | 79,290 | 35,946 | 986 | 7,103 | 48,477 | 15 | 497 | 816 | 16 |
| 1999 | 180,902 | 91,858 | 41,995 | 789 | 9,287 | 34,898 | 10 | 404 | 1,651 | 10 |
| 2000 | 185,987 | 89,893 | 41,076 | 729 | 11,653 | 40,254 | 13 | 490 | 1,874 | 5 |
| 2001 | 177,739 | 76,212 | 40,112 | 714 | 10,668 | 47,889 | 12 | 507 | 1,619 | 6 |
| 2002 | 150,084 | 41,295 | 37,723 | 1,226 | 12,809 | 55,322 | 11 | 572 | 1,101 | 25 |
| 2003 | 186,151 | 52,014 | 39,600 | 1,240 | 17,630 | 73,609 | 12 | 597 | 1,442 | 7 |
| *Includes those aliens charged under the statutes previous to April 1, 1997 as "entered without inspection." | ||||||||||
| Note: The administrative reason for formal removal is the legal basis for removal. Some aliens who are criminals may be removed under a different administrative reason (or charge) for the convenience of the government. Removals include those actions known as deportation and exclusion prior to the revision of law that was effective April 1, 1997. | ||||||||||
Prior to the passage of Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility in 1996, the INS used the term "exclusion" to mean denial of an alien's entry into the United States. "Deportation" referred to the formal removal of an alien from the United States after being found in violation of immigration laws. IIRIRA consolidated the two procedures into one category called "removals."
Table 5.5 compares removals by reason for fiscal years 1991 through 2003. The increasing number of removals—33,189 total in 1991 compared to 186,151 in 2003—reflects not only growth in the number of immigrants but changes in immigration laws and enforcement activities. According to data in the 2003 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, 497,000 arriving aliens initially were determined to be inadmissible in FY 2003. Although approximately 181,000 of these were inadmissible for reasons that made them subject to expedited removal, 128,000 chose to withdraw their applications for admission. Of the remaining 53,000 who were scheduled for expedited removal, about 6,000 expressed a fear of being returned to their countries of origin and were referred to an asylum officer. Expedited removals totaled 23% of removals in 2003.
The INS contended that as many as 314,000 "absconders" who had been ordered deported by an immigration judge remained at large as of early 2002 ("Guidance for Absconder Apprehension Initiative," Washington, DC: Office of Deputy Attorney General, January 25, 2002). In January 2002 the Department of Justice launched the Absconder Apprehension Initiative, which was to begin with the deportation of about 1,000 immigrants from Middle Eastern countries who had been convicted of felonies in the United States but remained at large. After the campaign was announced, the INS predicted that it would take a minimum of a year just to enter the names of the absconders in the FBI database and that the agency was unlikely to be able to locate more than 10% of the absconders.
In 2003 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) took over responsibility for locating absconders. In a November 16, 2004, press release ("ICE Detention and Removal Sets Record for Fiscal Year 2004," http://www.ice.gov/graphics/news/newsreleases/articles/droFY04.htm), ICE announced that the removal of criminal and other illegal aliens from the United States reached record levels in FY 2004. A total of 157,281 aliens were removed. In addition, ICE recorded a sizable increase in apprehensions under a new program specifically targeting fugitive aliens.
"Removing criminal aliens and other illegal aliens from the United States is critical to the integrity of our immigration system and important to the safety of our communities," Michael J. Garcia, DHS Assistant Secretary for ICE, was quoted as saying in the 2004 press release. "The 9/11 Commission Report details how our immigration system was exploited by terrorists, and we know that other dangerous criminals have sought illegal entry by similar means. We are bringing to bear the full force of our authorities to locate and remove those in the country illegally."
On May 14, 2003, ICE initiated a Most Wanted list on its website (http://www.ice.gov/graphics/investigations/mostwanted.htm). The list included "Most Wanted Criminal Aliens" who had been convicted of mostly violent crimes and had evaded final removal orders. On February 18, 2005, for example, the list included ten individuals convicted of crimes against children, assault and weapons offenses, and manslaughter. There were also five individuals wanted for human smuggling, most of which involved deaths. A separate "Most Wanted Fugitives" list included eleven individuals wanted for customs violations such as drug smuggling, firearms smuggling, stolen vehicles, child pornography, and money laundering. The website lists included a photo of each individual and personal information. The website provided a telephone number that any member of the public could call with information about individuals on the lists.
Field Fugitive Operations Teams Seek Absconders
On February 25, 2003, the National Fugitive Operations Program was established with a mission to identify, locate, apprehend, and remove fugitive aliens. The Absconder Initiative under this program established eighteen Field Fugitive Operations Teams around the country to perform the work.
In "Outnumbered in a Hunt for Aliens" for the Washington Times (July 20, 2004), Jerry Seper reported on the activities of one field team operating in the Los Angeles area. In a pre-dawn raid the team arrested "three Mexican nationals and a Guatemalan, all convicted criminals, and an Israeli national sought by the U.S. government as a potential terrorist threat." Seper noted that in the city of Los Angeles more than 90% of outstanding homicide warrants and 65% of fugitive felony warrants were for illegal aliens.
Seper's article reported that the eighteen squads nationwide were seeking to arrest 80,000 criminal aliens—including killers, rapists, drug dealers, and child molesters—and at least 320,000 absconders. Barely 200 agents were searching for nearly a half-million criminal aliens and absconders hiding in communities from Seattle and Los Angeles to Miami and New York City.
Operation Predator
Operation Predator, an initiative targeting criminals who sexually exploit children, began in July 2003. As of March 2005 Operation Predator had resulted in more than 5,000 arrests nationwide ("Operation Predator," http://www.ice.gov/graphics/news/factsheets/operationpredator.htm, March 9, 2005). Approximately 85% of those arrested were foreign-national sexual predators whose crimes made them deportable. Between July 2003 and March 2005 more than 2,100 child predators were deported.
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