THE NATION - News from May 21, 2009
The number of arrests at the U.S.-Mexico border has dropped 27% this year, a decline that could put the figure at its lowest level since the early 1970s, officials said.
The decline accelerates a three-year trend that experts attribute to the economic downturn, with stronger U.S. immigration enforcement measures also playing a role.
U.S. Border Patrol Chief David V. Aguilar released the data to the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on immigration. There were 354,959 arrests from October 2008 to May, down from 486,735 a year ago.
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