Reality Check: Fact & Fiction In The Immigration Debate
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The number of unauthorized Mexican immigrants in the United States seems like a big number, and it is: 5.9 million people in 2012.
But that number is down one million, from the 6.9 million unlawful entries in 2007.
Minnesota has an estimated 95,000 unlawful immigrants -- 53 percent of the unauthorized immigrant population.
Wisconsin has 85,000 – 76 percent of the unauthorized immigrants.
It is true that many unlawful entries come across a porous U.S.- Mexican border.
But 40 percent of unauthorized immigrants come to the United States legally. They overstayed their visas and never went home. But that is not a criminal offense.
Improper entry into the U.S. is illegal the same way texting while driving is illegal. Both are misdemeanors which are punishable by a fine and possible jail time.
Unlawful presence in the U.S. is not a criminal offense, it is a civil violation.
Re-entry, after deportation, is a felony.
Despite political rhetoric, general crime rates among unlawful immigrants are lower than the native population.
Here are some numbers:
- Young Mexican-born immigrants ages 18-39 have an incarceration rate of 5.9 percent
- American born males: 3.5 percent
- Foreign-born Mexicans: 0.7 percent
The number of deportations for immigration offenses is rising. The U.S. deported 176,968 Mexican immigrants in 2014, 76 percent of them for felony level crimes.
The most common crimes:
- Drug offenses: 33 percent
- Unlawful re-entry: 30 percent
- Fraud: 15 percent
- Firearms: 10 percent
Here are some of the sources we used for this Reality Check:
Immigration and Nationality Act
Crime Rate Among Unlawful Immigrants - 1
Crime Rate Among Unlawful Immigrants - 2
Crime Rate Among Unlawful Immigrants - 3
Unauthorized Mexican Immigrant Populations by State
MN Driving Laws, Penalties - 1
MN Driving Laws, Penalties - 2
US Unauthorized Immigrant Population Levels Off
Politifact: Do 40% of Undocumented Immigrants Come Into US Legally?