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Monday, December 29, 1997

Justice Department aims to put the focus on immigration crime

HOUSTON (AP) - The focus of the war on drugs in Texas will be on immigration crime in 1998, an acting U.S. attorney said.

U.S. Attorney James DeAtley said the U.S. Department of Justice will add 30 prosecutors in the judicial districts along the southwest border to handle increased numbers of immigration cases.

Some of those positions will likely be added in the Southern District of Texas, which includes offices in Houston, Corpus Christi, Brownsville, Laredo and Victoria, the Houston Chronicle reported.

The Southern District of Texas is the fifth largest geographic area in the country.

One of the primary goals of the increase in attorneys is to build cases against corrupt border patrol and immigration agents who may turn a blind eye toward illegal immigration for a price.

Two prosecutors will be designated to handle immigration cases in the border offices, DeAtley said. A supervisor responsible for handling only immigration crimes will be named next year.

Congressional and public concern over the illegal immigration and drugs have prompted the action.

Two years ago, the Southwest Border Initiatives - a coalition of law enforcement in South Texas, Southern California, Arizona and New Mexico - began cracking down on illegal drugs and immigration in tandem, to prevent problems from moving from one border area to another.

And new laws that took effect last year, coupled with the Immigration and Reform Act of 1996, are expected to have a deterrent effect on illegal immigrants who re-enter the United States after having been deported.

Drug smugglers have used the same pathways across the border that illegal immigrants forged decades ago. With the increased numbers of federal agents patrolling the borders in an immigration crackdown, DeAtley expects to see a corresponding increase in drug cases - and public corruption investigations. Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story
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