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House Members Ask President to Dedicate More Resources to Prosecution of 'Coyotes' who Smuggle Ilegal Aliens

Date: Sept. 27, 2005
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Immigration


House Members Ask President to Dedicate More Resources to Prosecution of 'Coyotes' who Smuggle Illegal Aliens

September 27, 2005 -
Washington, DC - Nineteen Members of the U.S. House of Representatives, including Rep. Darrell Issa, have asked President George W. Bush to dedicate more resources to the prosecution of human smugglers known as "coyotes."

"We ask that you dedicate additional resources and direct U.S. Attorneys in the Southwest region to make the prosecution of human smugglers a priority," wrote the Members in the letter sent yesterday.

Last year, the U.S. Attorney's office in San Diego stated that it did not have the resources to prosecute human smugglers in all but the most egregious cases.

"The de facto catch and release program for alien smugglers is outrageous," said Rep. Issa who has sought to increase funding for the prosecution of smugglers. "We're spending money on border security to stop smugglers but when we catch them we just let them go. The failure to prosecute smugglers is diminishing the value of our investments in border security."

http://issa.house.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressOffice.View&ContentRecord_id=381&Region_id=0&Issue_id=0&CFID=1254971&CFTOKEN=86354147

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