Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent out a memorandum this afternoon which directed the US Attorneys in states along the Southwestern border to follow a "zero tolerance" policy for all offenses referred for prosecution under 8 USC section 1325(a). That section of the US Code states as follows:
"Any alien who (1) enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers, ... shall, for the first commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both, and, for a subsequent commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18, or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both."
This directive certainly seems to tell the US Attorneys along the border to have all people apprehended entering the USA illegally tried and then put in jail. If one wanted to have a deterrent to illegal immigration, this sure sounds like one. The problem, of course, is that there is only so much jail space, so many attorneys, so many judges, etc. The USA will quickly run out of space to hold these people. Even so, if word filters back across the border, it may dissuade some of those who are contemplating illegal entry into the USA.
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