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INS MEETS WITH HARSH CRITICISM FOR RELEASING CRIMINAL ALIENS
At a hearing this week before the appropriations subcommittee that determines funding for the INS, the agency was slammed by lawmakers for releasing criminal aliens who went on to commit new crimes.  Following the case last summer of Angel Maturino Resendez, also known as Rafael Resendez-Ramirez (and commonly referred to as the “railway murderer”), who is alleged to have committed a string of murders after reentering the US after repeated removals from the country, House members called for statistics on the agency’s release of criminal aliens.  This report was recently released by the Justice Department Inspector General, and fueled much of the criticism heard during the subcommittee meeting. 
Of the 35,318 criminal aliens released by the INS over a five-year period from May 1994 to May 1999, 11,605 committed new offenses following their release.  However, few of these crimes were serious – 98 homicides, 142 sexual assaults, 347 robberies and 1,214 assaults.  According to Rep. Harold Rogers (R-KY), this record reflects an “absolutely catastrophic failure of the agency.”  
INS Commissioner Doris Meissner was quick to defend the agency.  She pointed out that many of the releases were beyond the INS’ control, as when a person wins their deportation case, or is ordered released by a judge.  In some cases, she did admit, the INS used its discretion to release aliens it had determined were not a risk to the community.  She also pointed out that while the 37% recidivism rate among criminal aliens is high, it does not approach the 66% recidivism rate among citizen criminals.