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Basqington, 'ID. QI. 20,530
April 11 , 2017
MEMORANDUM FO R ALL FED ERAL PROS ECUTORS

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FROM:

THE ATTORNEY G E N E R A L ~

SUBJECT:

Renewed Comm itment to Crimina l Immi gration Enfo rcement

Charging Practices

It is a hi gh priority of the Department of Justice to establi sh lawfulness in our
imm igrati on system. While dramatic progress has been made at the border in recent months,
much remain s to be done. It is critical that our work focus on crimina l cases that will further
reduce illegality. Consistent and vigorous enforcement of key laws w ill disrupt organizations
and deter unlawful conduct. I ask that you increase your efforts in this area making the
following immig ration offenses hig her priorities. Further guidance and support of executing thi s
priority- includi ng an updated memorandum on charg ing fo r all criminal cases- w ill be
forthcoming.
8 U.S.C. § 1324 ("[b]ringing in and harboring certain aliens") and related offenses: Each
Di strict shall consider for prosecution any case involving the unlawful transportation or
harboring of ali ens, o r any o ther conduct proscribed pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1324. If a
determi nation must be made regarding use of finite resources, a priority should be given to those
who are bringing in three or more alie ns into the Uni ted States and those who are transporting or
harboring three o r more alie ns, as well as offenses where there are aggravating circumstances,
such as those invol ving serious bod il y injury, physical or sexual assault, or the death of any
person. Priority should also be given to prosecuting any offenses under secti on 1327 (" aidi ng or
assisting criminal al iens to enter") and section 1328 (' importation of al iens for immoral
purposes'}
8 U.S .C. § 1325 (" [i]mproper entry by alien"): Each Di strict shall consider for felony
prosecution under 8 U.S.C. § 1325 any case where a defendant has two or more prior
mi sdemeanor improper e ntry convictions or one o r mo re prior misdemeano r improper entry
convictions with aggravating circumstances, such as a fe lo ny criminal histo ry, gang membership
or affil iatio n, multipl e prior vo luntar y returns, prio r removal, deportation or exclusion, or other
aggravating circumstances. Each District shall also consider for fe lony prosecution under 8
U.S .C. § 1325 any case where a defendant knowingly enters into a marriage fo r the purpose of
evad ing any provis ion of the immigration laws.
Regarding misdemeanor vio lations of 8 U.S.C. § 1325, I ask that each U.S. Attorney's
Office on the Southwest Border (i.e. , Di strict of A ri zona, Di strict of New Mexico, Southern

 Memorandum fro m the Attorney General
Subject: Renewed Commitment to Crimina l Immi grati on Enforcement

Page 2

Distri ct of Ca liforni a, Southern District of Texas, and Western Di strict of Texas) work with the
U.S. Department of Homeland Security and any other appropriate agency to develop a set of
guidelines fo r prosecuting such violations. T hese guidelines should ai m to accompli sh the goal
of deterring first-time improper entrants. Each Distri ct should submit its guide lines to the Office
of the Deputy Attorney General by April 24,201 7.
8 U.S.C. § 1326 (" [r]eentry of removed a liens"): Each District sha ll consider prosecution
of 8 U.S.C. § 1326 fo r each illegal reentrant. Priority however, must be given to defendants
who have been convicted of ru1 aggravated felony, have any pri or criminal hi story indicating the
defendant poses a dan ger to pu blic safety, have one or more admin istrative or criminal
immigration violations, gang membership or affili ation, or where other aggravating
circ umstances are present.
18 U.S.C. § I 028A C-'[a]ggravated identity theft") & 18 U.S.C. § 1546 (" [O raud and
mi suse of visas. permits. and other documents"): Each District shall consider, to the extent
practicable, prosecution o f both aggravated identity the ft under Section I 028A and document
fra ud under Section 1546 in re lation to the immigration offenses listed above.
18 U.S.C. § 111 ("[a]ssaulting. resisting. or impeding" officers): Each Di strict sha ll
consider, to the extent practi cabl e, prosecution of assault, resisting, or impeding offi cers under
Section 111 , while they are engaging in the performance of their o fficia l duties in the
admini strati ve and criminal immi gration context. More information on this will fo llow.

Sentencing Practices
At the sentencing phase of each federal case prosecutors should seek, to the ex tent
practicable, j udicial orders of removal and a term of supervised release that is consistent with the
factors set forth in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). I know many of yo u are already seeking these measures
from Di strict Co urts, and I ask that you continue this effort to achieve the results consistent with
thi s guidance.

Border Sccuritv Coordinators
In furtherance of these obj ectives, I al so direct every Distri ct to designate a Border
Sec urity Coordinator ("Coord inator") by c lose of business on April 18, 201 7. T hese
Coord inators will be respons ibl e fo r:
•
•
•
•

overseeing the investigation and prosecution o f the offenses listed above;
attending tra ining programs with other Coordinators regarding these offenses;
providing legal advice and training to AUSAs rega rding these offenses; and
ma intaining and routine ly reporting prosecution statistics related to these offenses.

Each Coordinator will be responsible for convening meeti ngs with representati ves from
the Department of Homeland Security- inc luding Immi gration and Customs Enfo rcement,
Home land Security Investigations, U.S. C ustoms and Borde r Protection, and United States

 Memo randum from the Atto rney Genera l
S ubject: Renewed Commi tment to C riminal Immigratio n Enforcement

Page 3

C itizenship and Immigrati o n Services as well as other law enforcement pa rtners deemed
necessary to accomplish this crim inal immigration enforcement effort. T he Coordinator wi ll
work with thi s group to ( I) coordinate specific immigratio n enfo rcement initiati ves, emphasizing
those initiatives that w ill have the g reatest impact on public safety; (2) initi ate tra ining programs;
and (3) facilitate information sharing.