OPINION:
Federal District Judge John W. deGravelles this month ordered the release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention of four illegal immigrants convicted of major felonies: three convicted of murder and one convicted of sex crimes (“Judge frees three illegal-immigrant murderers from detention; calls convictions ‘irrelevant,’” Web, Feb. 11).
The judge said the four had been held too long in detention and had to be released, as there is little likelihood of their home countries of Cuba and Ethiopia taking them back voluntarily.
The solution is simple: Force their home countries to take them back by telling the home countries that the criminals will be arriving at a specific time and place and that any interference will be met by military force. No negotiation.
Considering our recent actions in places such as Iran, Syria and Colombia, I doubt any country will resist these efforts. In fact, I bet they will quickly start taking back their citizens the way most other countries do.
I believe there are at least a few thousand other illegal immigrants in the U.S. with deportation orders whose home countries refuse to take them back. They all need to go in the next 30 days.
Cmdr. WAYNE L. JOHNSON
Judge Advocate General’s Corps, U.S. Navy (retired)
Alexandria, Virginia
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