House passes bill for stricter penalties for criminal immigrants who re-enter country

The U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would impose stricter penalties for deported immigrants convicted of crimes who re-enter the country.

HR 3004, known as "Kate's Law," passed largely along party lines 257-167 on June 29, 2017.

Penalties in the bill apply to any foreigner who has been "denied admission, excluded, deported, or removed, or who has departed the United States while an order of exclusion, deportation, or removal is outstanding, and subsequently enters, attempts to enter, crosses the border to, attempts to cross the border to, or is at any time found in the United States."

The law is named after Kate Steinle, a 32-year-old woman fatally shot in 2015 in San Francisco. Authorities said her killer was an immigrant in the country illegally who had been deported five times.

Individuals shall face up to 25 years in prison if they are found again in the United States after being deported and if they were convicted of murder, rape, kidnapping, a felony related to slavery or terrorism, or three or more felonies of any kind, according to the bill introduced by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va.

The bill also outlines consequences, such as prison time and fines, for immigrants who re-enter and have been convicted for three or more misdemeanors or a felony. The length of imprisonment increases based on the severity of the previous sentence.

Goodlatte's bill would amend Section 276 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which already lays out imprisonment penalties for criminals who re-enter the country. But current law is more narrow. For instance, an individual who re-enters the country can be imprisoned up to 10 years if they had been convicted for three or more misdemeanors involving drugs, crimes against the person, or both.

The new bill widens the categories of crimes for which immigrants will be penalized. Goodlatte's bill defines misdemeanors as "any criminal offense punishable by a term of imprisonment of not more than 1 year under the applicable laws of the United States, any State, or a foreign government."

Under current law, the maximum sentences for criminals who re-enter the United States range from 10 to 20 years, depending on previous convictions. The new bill sets those maximum sentences from 10 to 25 years.

"This law will enhance criminal penalties for those who repeatedly re-enter the country illegally," said President Donald Trump on June 28 during an immigration roundtable discussion that included the father of Jamiel Shaw, Jr., a 17-year-old fatally shot by a gang member living in the country illegally.

The bill also said any immigrant previously denied admission or deported, or who left the country while he or she had an outstanding deportation order, and who returns to the country shall be fined, imprisoned for up to two years, or both. That's even if the individual does not have a criminal conviction.

The bill is co-sponsored by 17 other Republican representatives. A similar bill, also named "Kate's Law," was introduced in January by Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa.

The House bill passage is a step toward Trump's promise, but it still has to go through the Senate and reach Trump's desk to sign into law. We continue to rate this promise In the Works.