Ratcliffe bill would close sentencing loopholes for repeat immigration law offenders

Legislation introduced by U.S. Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) on April 17 would close sentencing loopholes that can enable repeat immigration law offenders to receive lighter sentences for additional criminal convictions.

The Peter, Ellie, and Grayson Victims of Illegal Criminal Entry (VOICES) Act of 2018, H.R. 5526, is named in honor of a family that was killed in a Northeast Texas car crash in March 2016. The driver of the van that struck the family’s car didn’t have a driver’s license and was previously convicted of entering the country illegally.

“My heart was broken when I learned about the devastating loss of Peter, Ellie and Grayson,” said Rep. Ratcliffe, who serves on the House Judiciary Committee and the House Homeland Security Committee. “This tragedy was caused by someone who was here illegally in the first place. And worse yet, our current laws allowed him to escape with what equated to no additional punishment on top of his existing sentences.”

The driver, Margarito Quintero Rosales, was sentenced to two years in state prison for criminally negligent homicide. However, that state sentence will count toward an existing federal sentence on a charge of illegal reentry following a prior deportation, Ratcliffe’s staff said. In response, Rep. Ratcliffe introduced H.R. 5526 on April 17, along with support from U.S. Reps. Lamar Smith (R-TX), Michael Burgess (R-TX) and Steve Womack (R-AR).

H.R. 5526 would close loopholes in sentencing guidelines for repeat immigration law offenders by elevating unlawful presence in the United States to an aggravating factor in federal crimes, according to information provided by Ratcliffe’s office. Additionally, the bill would amend sentencing guidelines to stipulate that a sentence given at the state level can’t be served in place of an existing federal prison sentence for an immigration-related crime.

“I’m glad my colleagues are joining me in my fight to ensure that future tragedies like this will be properly deterred by stopping illegal criminal aliens from falling through the cracks of our criminal justice system,” Rep. Ratcliffe said. “We owe the victims’ families nothing less.”

The bill has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee.