However, we all know that prosecution of criminal gang members is
notoriously difficult. This is because victims and witnesses of gang
crime are often reluctant to testify because of the quite reasonable
fear of retaliation against them or their families, thus many gang
members are never convicted of the crimes they have committed. The question is often asked: Why should law-abiding Americans have to
wait until an alien gang member has committed a deportable offense? Why
not deport the gang member before he has a chance to victimize more
innocent people? The answer is that current immigration law contains
dangerous loopholes that alien gang members are exploiting. Currently, an alien may not be deported, even if he is known to be a
member of a criminal gang or participating in gang activities. ICE must
wait for the gang member to be first convicted of a deportable offense. H.R. 3697 changes that. For the first time, ICE will be permitted to
place alien gang members into removal proceedings on the grounds of
being criminal gang members.
Keywords matched
immigration deportable deported