Portland, OR – Federal prosecutors are seeking court action against four Oregon counties after immigration agents said local officials released 10 violent felons into the community instead of turning them over for removal proceedings. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon and the Justice Department’s Civil Division filed a petition to enforce administrative subpoenas issued by ICE Homeland Security Investigations Seattle. The subpoenas demand information from Clackamas, Washington, Multnomah and Marion Counties to locate individuals ICE says should have been transferred for deportation.
The petition follows years of county officials disregarding immigration detainers, allowing offenders with convictions for rape, assault, kidnapping and child exploitation to reenter communities after serving prison sentences. Federal authorities say the information sought will help track down the 10 individuals and move forward with their removal cases.
HSI Seattle acting Special Agent in Charge April Miller criticized Oregon’s sanctuary policies, stating that releasing “the worst criminal aliens” forced federal officers to pursue them in public, creating risks for both law enforcement and residents.
The 10 individuals highlighted by ICE include:
- A man convicted of manslaughter after prior assault and criminal mistreatment charges, released in 2023.
- A sex offender convicted of multiple rapes and sodomy involving a minor under 16, later found guilty of nine counts of sexual abuse, released in 2022.
- A man convicted of kidnapping, burglary, robbery and assault, released this year.
- A felon convicted of assault, weapons offenses and attempted burglary, released in 2023.
- A sex offender convicted of abusing two children under 14, released in 2022.
- A rapist who admitted using or threatening a weapon during his offense, released in 2023.
- Another convicted rapist sentenced to 10 years in prison, released in 2023.
- A sex offender convicted of raping a child under 12 and sexually abusing a child under 14, released in 2022.
- A man convicted of rape and sexual abuse in 2008 and again in 2016, released in 2022.
- An individual convicted of federal document fraud before being sentenced in Oregon for robbery and kidnapping, released in 2023.
According to ICE, each of the men has served lengthy prison terms in Oregon and remains subject to removal under U.S. immigration law.
Federal prosecutors now ask the court to compel Oregon counties to comply with the subpoenas, marking the latest clash between federal immigration enforcement and local sanctuary policies.
The battle over who controls Oregon’s streets has landed in federal court.
