Operation Cross Check
{{Short description|Ongoing US law enforcement operation}}
{{Infobox law enforcement operation
| name = Operation Cross Check
| codename = Cross Check
| partof =
| image = ERO officers apprehend a criminal alien target in northern Virginia during a Cross Check operation. - 50494537872.jpg
| image_upright =
| alt =
| caption = Enforcement and Removal Operations officers apprehending a criminal target in northern Virginia during an Operation Cross Check
| type = Law enforcement operation
| scope = National
| planned_by = U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
| initiated_by = Obama administration
| executed_by = U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Local law enforcement agencies
| country_names =
| countries_number =
| objective = To identify, arrest, and deport illegal immigrants with criminal records
| method = Coordinated raids
| target = Illegal immigrants with criminal convictions
| date_begin = {{date|2011|03|01|df=y}}
| date_end =
| duration = ongoing
| date_executed =
| suspects_number = Over 100,000 identified
| arrested_number = Over 15,000 arrested in total
| indictments_number =
| complaints_number =
| information_number =
| convictions_number = Large, mostly resulting in deportation
| convictions_appealed =
| other_appeals_number =
| misc_results =
| initial_budget =
}}
Operation Cross Check is an ongoing law enforcement operation led by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to identify, arrest, and deport illegal immigrants with criminal records. Since its launch in 2011, the operation has resulted in thousands of arrests and deportations across the United States.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/30/us/politics/ice-arrests-nearly-3000-in-7-day-operation.html|title=ICE Arrests Nearly 3,000 in 7-Day Operation|date=2011-09-29|website=New York Times|access-date=2024-08-13}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/federal-ice-officials-announce-ice-operation-cross-check-results-in-arrests/2011/09/29/gIQANQJ56K_story.html|title=Federal Officials Announce Operation Cross Check Results in Arrests|date=2011-09-29|newspaper=Washington Post|access-date=2024-08-13}}
Background
The roots of Operation Cross Check lie in the broader strategy of ICE's enforcement priorities, which evolved significantly during the late 2000s.{{Cite book|last=Dow|first=Mark|title=American Gulag: Inside U.S. Immigration Prisons|date=2004|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0520240612|location=Berkeley, CA}} By 2011, the Obama administration had intensified efforts to deport illegal immigrants with serious criminal records, focusing on those who posed a potential threat to national security and public safety.{{Cite book |last=Meissner |first=Doris |url=https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/uploads/23bd64a7-447d-4f62-b68d-3a45089159d8/immigration-enforcement-u.s.-201301.pdf |title=Immigration Enforcement in the United States: The Rise of a Formidable Machinery |last2=Kerwin |first2=Donald |last3=Chishti |first3=Muzaffar |last4=Bergeron |first4=Claire |date=2013 |publisher=MPI Press |isbn=978-0-9831591-4-8 |location=Washington, DC}} The operation built on the Secure Communities program, which facilitated data sharing between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities to identify criminal aliens.{{Cite book |last=Chishti |first=Muzzaffar |title=The Role of Local Police: Striking a Balance Between Immigration Enforcement and Civil Liberties |date=2012 |publisher=Brookings Institution Press |isbn=978-1-884614-23-1 |location=Washington, DC}}{{Cite report|title=Secure Communities by the Numbers: An Analysis of Demographics and Due Process|author=Kohli, Aarti, Markowitz, Peter L., Chavez, Lisa|publisher=Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Law and Social Policy, University of California, Berkeley|date=2011|url=https://www.law.berkeley.edu/files/Secure_Communities_by_the_Numbers.pdf}}
Operation
Operation Cross Check involves large-scale raids across multiple states, often coordinated to occur over a few days. These operations are highly organized, with ICE officers working closely with state and local law enforcement agencies. The operations target individuals with prior criminal convictions, especially those who have re-entered the U.S. illegally after being deported.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-arrests-more-3100-convicted-criminal-aliens-and-immigration-fugitives-nationwide|title=ICE arrests more than 3,100 convicted criminal aliens and immigration fugitives in nationwide operation|date=2012-04-02|website=ICE|access-date=2024-08-13}}
In 2011, 2,900 Criminal Aliens were arrested by ICE.{{Cite news|last=Gomez|first=Alan|title=Immigration Sweep Nets 2,900 Criminal Immigrants|date=2011-10-03|work=USA Today|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2011/10/03/immigration-sweep-nets-2900-criminal-immigrants/50689814/|access-date=2024-08-13}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.dhs.gov/news/2011/10/03/ice-arrests-2900-criminal-aliens-nationwide-enforcement-operation|title=ICE Arrests 2,900 Criminal Aliens in Nationwide Enforcement Operation|date=2011-10-03|website=Department of Homeland Security|access-date=2024-08-13}} One of the largest phases took place in March 2012, resulting in over 3,100 arrests. This operation targeted individuals involved in violent crimes, drug trafficking, and other serious offenses. Another significant operation in 2017 focused on gang members and those with ties to organized crime.{{Cite news|last=Holpuch|first=Amanda|title=ICE Arrests Nearly 1,400 People in Raids Targeting Gangs|date=2017-05-11|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/may/11/ice-raids-gang-members-immigration-sweep|access-date=2024-08-13}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/operation-cross-check-2017-targets-criminal-aliens-gang-members|title=Operation Cross Check 2017 Targets Criminal Aliens, Gang Members|date=2017-09-28|website=U.S. Department of Justice|access-date=2024-08-13}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.dhs.gov/news/2017/02/13/statement-secretary-kelly-recent-ice-enforcement-actions|title=Statement from Secretary Kelly on recent ICE enforcement actions|date=2017-02-13|website=Department of Homeland Security|access-date=2024-08-13}}
Impact and controversy
Operation Cross Check has been both supported and criticized. Supporters argue that it effectively removes dangerous individuals from communities, reducing crime rates and enhancing public safety.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/operation-cross-check-results-arrest-123-criminal-aliens-and-immigration|title=Operation Cross Check Results in Arrest of 123 Criminal Aliens and Immigration Fugitives|date=2015-07-28|website=U.S. Customs and Border Protection|access-date=2024-08-13}} However, the operation has also sparked controversy, with critics accusing it of targeting immigrants indiscriminately and contributing to racial profiling.{{Cite web|url=https://www.aclu.org/news/immigrants-rights/aclu-reacts-to-latest-ice-raid-reports|title=ACLU Reacts to Latest ICE Raid Reports|date=2017-09-29|website=ACLU|access-date=2024-08-13}} Critics also note that the operation has sown fear in immigrant communities especially ones with families,{{Cite report|title=Shattered Families: The Perilous Intersection of Immigration Enforcement and the Child Welfare System|author=Wessler, Seth Freed|publisher=Applied Research Center|date=November 2011|url=https://www.raceforward.org/research/reports/shattered-families|access-date=2024-08-13}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.democracynow.org/2017/3/1/mass_ice_raids_lead_to_deportations|title=Mass ICE Raids Lead to Deportations and Separations, Sparking Fear in Immigrant Communities|last=Goodman|first=Amy|date=2017-03-01|website=Democracy Now|access-date=2024-08-13}} leading to lower reporting of crimes by undocumented individuals.{{Cite book |last=Menjivar |first=Cecilia |title=Immigration Law and the Lives of Central American Immigrants |date=2016 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-1-4780-2719-5 |location=Oakland, CA}}{{Cite book |last=Varsanyi |first=Monica |title=Taking Local Control: Immigration Policy Activism in U.S. Cities and States |date=2011 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=9780804770262 |location=Stanford, CA}}
ICE continues to defend the operation, emphasizing that the majority of those arrested have significant criminal records and are not merely being targeted for minor immigration violations.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ice.gov/features/cross-check|title=Operation Cross Check: Protecting America by Removing Threats|date=2017|website=ICE|access-date=2024-08-13}} Despite the controversy, Operation Cross Check remains a key component of ICE's broader enforcement strategy under different administrations.