An audit of nearly one million detentions of immigrants by the United States Customs and Border Patrol shows that agents regularly fail to verify the addresses the individuals provide before releasing them into the U.S. The audit examined detentions between March 2021 and August 2022 and found more than 177,000 erroneous records.
The Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General conducted the audit. A report from the inspector general notes that agents lack the resources needed to verify addresses properly and that the crush of immigrants the department processes is overwhelming. Based on the number of records, about 60,000 illegal immigrants are released into the U.S. every month.
The U.S. has seen a massive uptick in immigration since at least 2018 and the situation has only worsened under President Joe Biden. His administration has refused to take action to stem the tide of illegals streaming across the southern border. States like Texas have been forced to take matters into their own hands. Texas has taken to busing immigrants to so-called sanctuary cities including New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
In addition to issuing 430,000 Notice to Appear tickets, Border Patrol agents released 318,000 immigrants under humanitarian parole and another 95,000 under prosecutorial discretion. The audit found numerous discrepancies including seven addresses that were recorded more than 500 times. More than 54,000 records had no address listed at all. Numerous records showed addresses belonging to government agencies or not-for-profit organizations.
The audit reviewed U.S. Border Patrol records for 981,671 illegal immigrants dated March 2021 to August 2022 and found addresses for more than 177,000 were either missing, invalid for delivery, or not legitimate residential locations. https://t.co/OlgCsYu2Th
— scott brow (@scottbrow605) September 12, 2023
The issue with inaccurate addresses is that once these immigrants are released into the U.S., there is no way for agents to find them. Immigrants are expected to appear before a judge to have their case heard, but many do not follow through. A recent report that examined 11 years of court data indicates that 83% of immigrants released into the U.S. with a Notice to Appear show up for court. The numbers are even higher for immigrants who are represented by an attorney. Even still, with the huge numbers of immigrants being processed, about 10,000 individuals released every month do not appear.
Immigration remains one of the top issues ahead of the upcoming 2024 election. A Gallup News poll conducted in June shortly after the Biden administration refused to continue Title 42 which allowed agents to immediately deport immigrants caught entering the country illegally shows an increasing number of Americans want to see immigration curtailed. Republican voters are more likely than Democrats to view immigration in negative terms.
The recent audit showing errors by the Border Patrol is likely to further drive the issue of immigration reform with voters. The June poll by Gallup News shows that just 8% of voters see immigration as the most important issue facing the nation, down from 13% in May.
