NATIONAL: "Hispanics Are Largest Ethnic Group in Federal Prisons, Study Shows," by Solomon Moore, New York Times, 19 February 2009.
Annual number of federal offenders doubles from 1991-2007. Thank you War on Drugs. But the Latino numbers quadruple, with the vast bulk being immigration sentences, followed by drug sentences. Of the Latinos in our fed prisons, 72% are not citizens--nice. Most are sent there by the four border states (CA, AZ, NM and TX). Cross the border illegally and--thanks to our zero tolerance--we toss you in jail. The average sentence for Latinos is 46 months. This is a good use of our taxpayer money all right.
Hispanics outpace African-Americans as federal prisoners
Indeed, it's been costing too much and we happen to be in the same situation here in my country which makes me curious and more of in an asking mode, why?
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