HOUSTON, Texas About half of the nations federal criminal cases last year were filed in regions near the U.S.-Mexico border, according to an alarming annual report from the Obama Administrations Department of Justice (DOJ).
During FY 2013, U.S. Attorneys offices filed a total of 61,529 criminal cases against defendants, according to the DOJ. Regions along the border each had more convictions than in any other district. 6,341 cases were filed in Western Texas, suggesting it is home to the countrys most severe crime patterns. 6,130 cases were filed in Southern Texas; 4,848 were filed in Southern California; 3,889 were filed in New Mexico; and 3,538 were filed in Arizona.
Judicial Watch pointed out that out of the 94 U.S. federal court districts, the five near the Mexico border see a large portion of criminal cases.
[and] also have the biggest number of defendants actually convicted of federal crimes.
The most common crimes committed over the year were immigration related, with 23,744 such cases having been filed by the feds. Judicial Watch pointed out that immigration crimes accounted for 38.6 percent of all federal cases.
Drug-related crimes were also common, with 13,383 such cases having been filed in FY 2013.