Phoenix, Arizona, ended its sanctuary city status—and crime plummeted.
In an interview with Fox News, Executive Director of the Arizona Police Association Levi Bolton explained the results: “When we eliminated our sanctuary policy back in 2008, we saw crime, violent and stolen vehicles fall by 25 percent,” he said.
“We saw a 20-year low crime rate. When we were allowed and had the discretion to contact our federal immigration partners, crime fell drastically,” he added.
In just one year, from 2008 to 2009, the murder rate in Phoenix dropped by 27 percent.
In addition, car theft fell by 36 percent, robberies by 23 percent, thefts by 19 percent, burglaries by 14 percent, and assaults by 13 percent. In total, that’s a rate of about 20 percent—in just the first year.
President Trump has made stopping illegal immigration a major promise of his campaign and early administration. By enforcing existing immigration laws, and using strong rhetoric to discourage illegal immigration into the country, illegal immigration has dropped by an estimated 53 percent—a number that the head of the Border Patrol’s union called “miraculous.”
If Trump’s hard line on illegal immigration continues, the rest of the country—if Phoenix’s results translates nationwide—could see significant decreases in crime as well.
