Immigration Prosecutions Rise, Hispanics Sentenced to Federal Prison Increase

AP reports that a new government report shows that more than half of all people sent to federal prison for felonies this year were Hispanic. For the first time, Hispanics made up the majority all federal felony offenders sentenced in the first nine months of fiscal year 2011, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission. Hispanics comprised 50.3 percent of all people sentenced in that time period, blacks 19.7 percent and whites 26.4 percent. Hispanics make up about 16 percent of the U.S. population.

The statistics reveal that felony immigration crimes, which include illegal crossing and other crimes such as alien smuggling, were responsible for most of the increase in the number of Hispanics sent to prison over the last decade.

“Statistics like this have to start drawing attention to this country’s immigration policies and what we’re doing, if this is one of the results,” said Fordham University Law School professor Deborah Denno. “The implications for Hispanics are huge when you think of the number of families affected by having their breadwinners put away for what in some cases would be considered a non-violent offense.”

KJ