Utah ranks 7th in nation for immigration prosecutions
Utah ranked seventh for November 2006, with 20 prosecutions, according to a report based on Department of Justice data by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, associated with Syracuse University.
Nationwide there were 2,690 prosecutions in November 2006. That's up 123 percent over 2001 but down 18 percent since the prior year.
Utah's ranking came a month before the December immigration enforcement at Swift & Co., which netted 145 arrests in Utah, 15 of which resulted in federal indictments.
U.S. Attorney for Utah Brett Tolman said immigration violations are a priority of his office. The bulk of the cases are aggravated re-entry cases, which involve felons who return after being deported. Another target is those who transport illegal immigrants into the state.
"I will continue to be a national leader in this area," Tolman said. "These are not just illegal aliens here to work, and hard-working trying to make a way for them and their families. They have committed serious crimes and come back into the state."
Nationally, "re-entry of deported alien" was the most frequently reported charge in immigration prosecutions. The second most common charge was "bringing in and harboring certain aliens" and third was "fraud and misuse of visas, permits and other documents."
E-mail: dbulkeley@desnews.com
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