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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Roque Planas

Republican bill targets migrants who re-enter US illegally with mandatory 10-year sentences

a man looking back
A man is detained by federal agents after his hearing at New York Federal Plaza Immigration Court inside the Jacob K. Javitz Federal Building in New York on 01 October 2025. Photograph: Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty Images

Republicans members of Congress have rallied behind a new approach to deterring unauthorized immigration – jailing migrants for a decade at a time.

The GOP has toyed with the idea of imposing mandatory minimums on immigration offenses for a decade, most famously with a proposal called “Kate’s Law”, which would have imposed five-year sentences on those convicted of illegal re-entry with certain criminal histories.

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