CRIMINAL ALIENS IN OREGON PRISONS

As of January 2009

According to the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) table dated January 1, 2009, there were 13,631 prisoners incarcerated in Oregon’s 13 State prisons.[1]

Not included in DOC’s January 1st prison population table was information indicating there were 1,136 Foreign National (criminal alien) prisoners incarcerated by the State.[2]

Criminal alien prisoners make up approximately 8.33 % of the State’s current prison population.

All 1,136 criminal alien prisoners currently incarcerated by DOC have Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) holds placed on them.

An ICE hold on a criminal alien prisoner means in all likelihood that after he/she serves his/her time in prison, after appearance in Federal Immigration Court, he/she will be deported from the United States (U.S.) to his/her country of origin.

To understand the effect criminal aliens have on the legal U.S. citizens and residents of Oregon, let us examine three intertwined but separate population groups. The three intertwined but separate population groups include legal U.S. citizens, non U.S. citizens (documented Foreign Nationals), and undocumented Foreign Nationals (illegal aliens).

The State of Oregon’s current estimated population is 3,745,455.
http://www.pdx.edu/media/p/r/PRC_2007_Population_Report2_rev.pdf

The U.S. Census Bureau most recent data (Table 1.16a: Population by State and U.S. Citizenship Status, With Percentages by State: 2003) places Oregon’s documented Foreign National, population at 190,620.  http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/foreign/acst2.html#cit

If the U.S. Census Bureau’s most recent population number is correct, documented Foreign Nationals would makeup approximately 5.09% of Oregon’s population.

According to the 2005 PEW Hispanic Research Center research, the estimated number of illegal aliens currently living in Oregon is between 125,000 and 175,000.
http://pewhispanic.org/files/factsheets/17.pdf

If PEW’s number of 175,000 thousand illegal aliens were included in Oregon’s current estimated population of 3.75 million, they would makeup approximately 4.67% of the State’s population.

The percentage of legal U.S. citizens, documented Foreign Nationals, and illegal aliens DOC currently incarcerates is approximately 0.36% of Oregon’s population.

Oregon’s prison system currently holds 12,495 prisoners who are legal U.S. citizens.

The incarceration rate by DOC of legal U.S. citizens is approximately 0.33% of the State’s population.

Using the 2003 U.S. Census Bureau’s most recent population number, the incarceration rate by DOC of documented Foreign Nationals would be 0.59% of their respective population of 190,620.

Using the 2005 PEW Hispanic Research Center population estimate, the incarceration rate by DOC of illegal aliens would be 0.65% of their respective population of 175,000.

Population numbers and incarceration rates for documented Foreign National and illegal alien populations really do not reflect monetary and the public safety costs criminal aliens pose to the legal U.S. citizen and documented Foreign National taxpayers of the State.

The cost to Oregon taxpayers to incarcerate an individual DOC prisoner is approximately $77.78 per day.  http://www.oregon.gov/DOC/PUBAFF/docs/pdf/quickfacts.pdf

The cost to Oregon taxpayers to incarcerate DOC’s criminal alien prison population is approximately $88,358.08 per day.

Annualized, the cost to Oregon taxpayers to incarcerate DOC’s criminal alien prison population is approximately $32,250,699.20 per year.

Even taking into account fiscal year 2008 United States Federal Government State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP) funding of $6,394,367.00, if the State of Oregon receives the same amount of SCAAP funding for fiscal year 2009, the cost to incarcerate criminal aliens to Oregon’s State government and taxpayers will be at least $25,856,332.20.

Reviewing the crimes committed by the 1,136 criminal aliens currently incarcerated in Oregon’s State prisons, they include assault, burglary, drugs, driving offenses, homicide, kidnapping, rape, robbery, sexual abuse, sodomy, theft, and vehicle theft.

In 2007 a United States Department of Justice (USDOJ) report titled “Cooperation of SCAAP (State Criminal Alien Assistance Program) Recipients in the Removal of Criminal Aliens from the United States, U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Inspector General Audit Division, Audit Report 07-07, January 2007, Redacted-Public Version” identified the State of Oregon as having an official “state sanctuary statute,” ORS 181.850, Enforcement of federal immigration laws. 
http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/reports/OJP/a0707/final.pdf

The United States Federal Government’s top law enforcement agency, the USDOJ, identified Oregon as a “sanctuary” for criminal aliens.

An Oregon law, Oregon Revised Statue 181.850 (ORS 181.850), prohibits DOC from asking prisoner immigration status. So Corrections officials are dependent on ICE to disclose whether a criminal alien prisoner is documented Foreign National or illegal alien.    http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/181.html

Because of ORS 181.850, even Oregon’s State Police (OSP), County Sheriff, and City Police departments cannot ask immigration status of anyone residing in the State, even known criminals incarcerated in county correctional facilities and jails.

The 2009 Oregon State Legislature should write and pass legislation to abolish or rewrite ORS 181.850 to untie the hands of the Oregon Department of Corrections, Oregon State Police, County Sheriffs, and City Police departments from helping United States Federal Government Law Enforcement officials, Immigration Customs Enforcement, ICE, fight crime committed by criminal aliens who reside in our State.

The State of Oregon should no longer be classified by our United States Federal Government as having an official “state sanctuary statute” for criminal aliens. Oregon should no longer be a sanctuary for criminal aliens to kill, rape, or maim legal United States Citizens or documented Foreign Nationals of our State.

Information compiled by David Cross

and submitted to Oregon State legislators