For Immediate Release:
October 11, 2023
For press inquiries only, contact:
Amanda Priest (334) 322-5694
Cameron Mixon (334) 242-7491
(Montgomery) – Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall joined a coalition of 28 attorneys general in a legal filing demanding President Biden end his catch-and-release policy, enforce the immigration laws, and secure the border. The Biden administration’s intentional dismantling of border security has resulted in more than seven million illegal immigrants surging across the border. Despite a court victory earlier this year against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the agency continues to allow the mass release of inadmissible immigrants into the country.
“Crime is on the forefront of every American’s mind, and with illegal aliens flooding through Biden’s porous border, the Administration has likely invited cartel members, traffickers, and terrorists into our backyard. There is no telling the damage that 100,000 unknown aliens every month will continue to do to our communities,” said Attorney General Marshall. “My colleagues and I have played the important role as the last line of defense against Biden’s poor political strategies, but the situation becomes more dire each day. We cannot have more American blood shed because of his pathetic policies on the border.”
The coalition of attorneys general submitted a Petition for Rulemaking to amend the DHS’s catch-and-release policies, arguing that the policies are blatantly unlawful and have horrendous effects on the security of our country. The petition states: “As the court found in Florida, DHS’s mass release policies have been ‘akin to posting a flashing ‘Come In, We’re Open’ sign on the southern border…. In August 2023, Border Patrol released 100,585 aliens under § 1226(a). Florida anticipates that the numbers in August and September will be even higher, especially given DHS’s decision to set release quotas for Border Patrol to meet. Even if the numbers merely remain the same, DHS is releasing aliens at a rate of over one million per year, and that does not include the aliens being released on parole under § 1182(d)(5).”
In addition, DHS is giving the migrants released under its unlawful practices a court date many years in the future. DHS’s unlawful decisions guarantee that millions of unauthorized immigrants remain in the U.S. for 15 years or longer before ever approaching a judge’s bench.
The coalition is urging DHS to amend its regulations to expressly prohibit the unlawful releases.
The Florida-led petition was signed-on by Attorney General Marshall and attorneys general of the following states: Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming.
To read the Petition for Rulemaking, click here.
-30-
