"We released over 15,000 individuals without even a notice to appear," Rep. Henry Cuellar, a senior House Democrat who represents a Texas district on the U.S.-Mexico border, said in a media call Monday afternoon. "They're not going to show up. They're on the honor system."
The Washington Examiner first reported in March that roughly 2,000 people who entered the country as part of a family group had been released into the United States without notices to appear in court, meaning that the government was effectively relying on them to hold themselves accountable for illegally entering the country.
BORDER DEMOCRAT CALLS ON BIDEN TO RETURN UNACCOMPANIED TEENAGERS TO MEXICO
It is unprecedented for Border Patrol to catch and release illegal immigrants into the U.S. without a mechanism to ensure they enter legal proceedings. Historically, when border authorities become overwhelmed, taking more people into custody than they can hold in facilities, those buildings become overcrowded, and families may be released into the country with documents that tell them when and where to appear in court for illegally crossing the border, which is a misdemeanor the first time and a felony anytime thereafter.
This change in operations means the government is depending on migrant families to act on their own recognizance to go through the legal process to see if they should not be removed or claim asylum. But there is no record of them in the court system to ensure this.
Cuellar previously said that the Border Patrol did not go rogue but sought approval to do releases this way through the proper channels. Biometrics, such as fingerprints, are taken before the migrants are let go.
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to requests for comment.