Southwest PA News

Lacey Greenwood, a resident of Charleroi, expressed alarm at the number of criminals being imported to the United States. "My anxiety has recently tripled due to the massive increase of immigrants to our small town." said Greenwood. "This used to be a small town with neighbors who all knew each other and looked out for one another."

As U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reports 3,689 illegal alien encounters across the state of Pennsylvania during fiscal year 2024, a new report shows illegal aliens may commit murder at rates 50% higher than the U.S. population.

"I learned and got comfortable carrying a firearm due to the unknown citizens around me in public." Greenwood said. "Now, I feel the need to carry a firearm on my own property due to high foot traffic from these migrants through our streets and alley ways."

An article by John R. Lott, Jr. posted on RealClearPolitics highlights data on criminal activity among illegal aliens released into the U.S. According to ICE data, more than 435,000 convicted criminals and nearly 227,000 individuals with pending charges were allowed entry as of July 2024. These include thousands of individuals convicted of serious crimes such as homicide, sex offenses, and assault. 

“About 7.4 million noncitizens are in the “national docket data,” so 662,776 is 9% of the total, and if one extrapolates the numbers to the homicide rate in this country, it strongly indicates that the government is letting migrants into this country who commit murder at a rate 50% higher than the rest of the U.S. population,” Lott wrote.

"And these numbers clearly underestimate the crime rate of these noncitizens. The noncitizens in the “national docket data” turned themselves in to border agents for processing or were caught," he continued. "Those who don’t turn themselves in are obviously far more likely to have something to hide from those doing the processing, so-called “gotaways,” who are observed illegally entering the U.S. but not caught or turned back."

Lott suggests that the root of this problem lies in a broken and overwhelmed immigration system, where the lack of proper background checks has led to the release of individuals with dangerous criminal histories. ICE agents, facing overwhelming caseloads and limited resources, have admitted to struggling to process the sheer number of migrants. The contrast with the Trump administration’s "Remain-in-Mexico" policy, which enforced stricter vetting procedures, has led to accusations that the Biden administration’s lax policies have resulted in more violent criminals being released into the public.

Furthermore, the administration’s transparency has come into question. According to Fox News, despite requests for accountability from lawmakers like Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX), the administration delayed responses for months regarding how many of these criminals entered the U.S. during Biden's tenure. Critics accuse the administration of attempting to downplay the severity of the border crisis, particularly following reports that some officials were instructed not to publicize arrests of migrants with ties to terrorism.

The silence from the White House has only fueled outrage. Law enforcement officers and Republicans have expressed frustration at the administration’s lack of urgency, pointing out that these failures have created a dangerous situation for American citizens. Under the current policies, not only are convicted criminals being released, but the system also lacks mechanisms to track their whereabouts once they are set free.

This has led to increased calls for reform, with Republicans and some border-state Democrats demanding stronger border security measures and more effective screening protocols. Critics argue that the administration’s reluctance to enforce strict immigration controls puts Americans at risk, particularly given that many of these migrants come from countries with little cooperation on background checks.

According to an analysis of CBP Data, during fiscal year 2024, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has arrested 45,402 illegal aliens who have previous criminal convictions or who are wanted by law enforcement. 

CBP has reported more than 2.7 million illegal alien encounters during Fiscal Year 2024, while there were only 646,822 in Fiscal Year 2020.