[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2709 Placed on Calendar Senate (PCS)]
Calendar No. 594
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2709
To increase the criminal penalties for illegally reentering the United
States and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 5, 2008
Mr. Sessions introduced the following bill; which was read the first
time
March 6, 2008
Read the second time and placed on the calendar
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To increase the criminal penalties for illegally reentering the United
States and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Border Crossing Deterrence Act of
2008''.
SEC. 2. EXPANSION OF OPERATION STREAMLINE.
(a) In General.--Not later than December 31, 2009, the Secretary of
Homeland Security, in Cooperation with the Attorney General, shall
expand Operation Streamline (the zero-tolerance prosecution policy for
illegal entry and reentry) to all 20 border sectors.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated $500,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2009 through
2018 to carry out this section.
SEC. 3. MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCES FOR ILLEGAL ENTRY.
Section 275 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1325)
is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as subsections
(d) and (e), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
``(c) Improper Time or Place; Criminal Penalties.--Any alien who is
apprehended while entering, or attempting to enter, the United States
at a time and place other than as designated by immigration offices--
``(1) in the case of a first violation of subsection (a),
shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of not less than
10 days and not more than 364 days;
``(2) in the case of a second violation of subsection (a),
shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of not less than
60 days and not more than 2 years; and
``(3) in the case of a third or subsequent violation of
subsection (a), shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of
not less than 90 days and not more than 3 years.''.
SEC. 4. MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCES FOR ILLEGAL REENTRY.
Section 276 (8 U.S.C. 1326) is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 276. REENTRY OF REMOVED ALIEN.
``(a) Reentry After Removal.--Any alien 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, shall be fined under title 18, United States Code,
and imprisoned not less than 90 days and not more than 2 years.
``(b) Reentry of Criminal Offenders.--Notwithstanding the penalty
prescribed under subsection (a), an alien described in that subsection
who was--
``(1) convicted for 3 or more misdemeanors or a felony
before such removal or departure, shall be fined under title
18, United States Code, and imprisoned for not less than 1 year
and not more than 10 years;
``(2) convicted for a felony before such removal or
departure for which the alien was sentenced to a term of
imprisonment of not less than 30 months, shall be fined under
such title, and imprisoned for not less than 2 years and not
more than 15 years;
``(3) convicted for a felony before such removal or
departure for which the alien was sentenced to a term of
imprisonment of not less than 60 months, shall be fined under
such title and imprisoned for not less than 4 years and not
more than 20 years;
``(4) convicted for 2 or more felonies before such removal
or departure, shall be fined under such title and imprisoned
for not less than 4 years and for not more than 20 years; or
``(5) convicted, before such removal or departure, for
murder, rape, kidnapping, for a felony offense described in
chapter 77 (relating to peonage and slavery) or 113B (relating
to terrorism) of such title, shall be fined under such title
and imprisoned for not less than 5 years and not more than 20
years.
``(c) Reentry After Repeated Removal.--Any alien who, after having
been denied admission, excluded, deported, or removed 2 or more times,
enters, attempts to enter, crosses the border to, attempts to cross the
border to, or is at any time found in the United States, shall be fined
under title 18, United States Code, and imprisoned for not less than 2
years and not more than 10 years.
``(d) Proof of Prior Convictions.--The prior convictions described
in subsection (b) are elements of the crimes described in that
subsection, and the penalties in that subsection shall apply only in
cases in which the conviction or convictions that form the basis for
the additional penalty are--
``(1) alleged in the indictment or information; and
``(2) proven beyond a reasonable doubt at trial or admitted
by the defendant.
``(e) Affirmative Defenses.--It shall be an affirmative defense to
a violation of this section that--
``(1) the alien had sought and received, before the alleged
violation, the express consent of the Secretary of Homeland
Security to reapply for admission into the United States;
``(2) with respect to an alien previously denied admission
and removed, the alien--
``(A) was not required to obtain such advance
consent under the Immigration and Nationality Act or
under any prior Act; and
``(B) had complied with all other laws and
regulations governing the alien's admission into the
United States; or
``(3) at the time of the prior exclusion, deportation,
removal, or denial of admission alleged in the violation, the
alien--
``(A) was younger than 18 years of age; and
``(B) had not been convicted of a crime or
adjudicated a delinquent minor by a court of the United
States, or a court of a State or territory, for conduct
that would constitute a felony if committed by an
adult.
``(f) Limitation on Collateral Attack on Underlying Removal
Order.--In a criminal proceeding under this section, an alien may not
challenge the validity of any prior removal order concerning the alien
unless the alien demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that--
``(1) the alien exhausted all administrative remedies that
may have been available to seek relief against the order;
``(2) the removal proceedings at which the order was issued
improperly deprived the alien of the opportunity for judicial
review; and
``(3) the entry of the order was fundamentally unfair.
``(g) Reentry of Alien Removed Before Completing Term of
Imprisonment.--Any alien removed pursuant to section 241(a)(4) who
enters, attempts to enter, crosses the border to, attempts to cross the
border to, or is at any time found in, the United States shall be--
``(1) incarcerated for the remainder of the term of
imprisonment, which was pending at the time of deportation
without any reduction for parole or supervised release unless
the alien affirmatively demonstrates that the Secretary of
Homeland Security has expressly consented to the alien's
reentry; and
``(2) subject to such other penalties relating to the
reentry of removed aliens as may be available under this
section or any other provision of law.
``(h) Limitation.--An individual who provides an alien with
emergency humanitarian assistance, including emergency medical care and
food, or transports the alien to a location where such assistance can
be rendered without compensation or the expectation of compensation may
not be prosecuted for aiding and abetting a violation of this section
based on the provision of such humanitarian services .
``(i) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Felony.--The term `felony' means any criminal offense
punishable by a term of imprisonment of more than 1 year under
the laws of the United States, of any State, or of a foreign
government.
``(2) Misdemeanor.--The term `misdemeanor' means any
criminal offense punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment
of not more than 1 year under the applicable laws of the United
States, of any State, or of a foreign government.
``(3) Removal.--The term `removal' includes any denial of
admission, exclusion, deportation, or removal, or any agreement
by which an alien stipulates or agrees to exclusion,
deportation, or removal.
``(4) State.--The term `State' means any of the several
States of the United States, the District of Columbia, and any
commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United States.''.
SEC. 5. MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCES FOR DESTROYING BORDER BARRIERS OR
INFRASTRUCTURE.
Section 1361 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking ``Whoever'' and inserting the following:
``(a) In General.--Whoever''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(b) Destruction of Border Barriers or Infrastructure.--Any alien
who damages or destroys fencing or infrastructure, such as cameras,
sensors, and vehicle barriers, that has been installed along the
international border of the United States by the United States
Government shall be fined under this title and imprisoned for not less
than 5 years.''.
Calendar No. 594
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2709
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To increase the criminal penalties for illegally reentering the United
States and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
March 6, 2008
Read the second time and placed on the calendar