Deportation of Foreign Felons Begins

The United States has started deporting foreigners who are legal U.S. residents but have felony convictions, officials said. Under a law passed this year, resident aliens with felony convictions can be deported. Federal agents on the first major roundup seized 43 people in El Paso over two weeks. “These are serious felons and they are a threat to our society,” said Roberto Saenz, assistant district director of investigations for the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. Saenz said the law allows the INS to deport a legal immigrant who has been convicted of a felony, regardless of when the crime was committed.