Overall, 16.5% of violent crimes in Maricopa County can be linked to illegal immigrants. The average cost for each offense? A whopping $20,000, which includes prosecution, incarceration, and other costs. This study breaks down felonies committed into categories, revealing that contrary to media myths, illegal immigrants commit more crimes in categories completely separate from the crime of illegally crossing the border. 

The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office has released a groundbreaking study with the help of Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s office breaking down the numbers of felonies illegal immigrants in Maricopa County commit. Contrary to media myths, illegal immigrants commit more felonies than the rest of the population on average. Even when crimes that may be related to smuggling are taken out of the equation, illegal immigrants still commit most felonies at higher rates. Illegal immigrants make up 9% of the population in Arizona, but are sentenced to 20.3% of all felony DUIs. 

Illegal immigrants are sentenced for 10.3% of sex crimes, 13.1% of auto thefts, and 12.6% of all thefts including shoplifting. In crimes that might be related to illegal entry, illegal immigrants account for 35.8% of sentences for kidnapping, 85.3% of sentences for criminal impersonation/false ID, and 50% of sentences for chop shops.

Overall, 16.5% of violent crimes can be linked to illegal immigrants. The average cost for each offense? A whopping $20,000, which includes prosecution, incarceration, and other costs. 18.5% of property crimes are due to illegal immigrants.

The GAO studied 55,000 illegal immigrants and found that on average, each had been arrested for 13 offenses. 80% of the arrests occurred in California, Arizona, and Texas. It costs $61.74 per day to house a prison inmate in Arizona. Combine that enormous cost with Arizona’s tax and spend governor Janet Napolitano, and it comes as no surprise that Arizona’s economy is suffering and facing a $2 billion dollar deficit.

The reason why illegal immigrants commit more crimes may be because a large portion of them are young males. Young males of any nationality commit crimes at a higher rate than other segments of the population. The findings in this study reinforce the wisdom of shifting public policy to an approach that encourages legal immigration, which spreads out the demographics more evenly, ending unnecessary stigmas towards those south of our border in particular.

For updated news on illegal immigration, including a free weekly newsletter, visit illegalimmigrationjournal.com. For the press release on this report, click here. The full report is here; go to page 6 for the chart breakdown of crimes.