Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Fresno City Gets Extension in Herndon 4-Story Apartment Case

6 hours ago

With Major Heat Risk Forecast, This Is a Good Weekend to Stay Indoors in Fresno

9 hours ago

Trump Says Intel Has Agreed to Deal for US to Take 10% Equity Stake

9 hours ago

Epstein Associate Maxwell Says She Never Saw Trump Behave Inappropriately

9 hours ago

Pew: US Immigrant Population Declines for First Time in Nearly 60 Years

12 hours ago

Powell, Citing Jobs Risk, Opens Door to Cuts but Doesn’t Commit

14 hours ago

FBI Agents Search Ex-Trump Adviser Bolton’s Home, Source Says

14 hours ago

Gaza City Officially in Famine, With Hunger Spreading, Says Global Hunger Monitor

14 hours ago

Gavin Newsom’s Redistricting Plan Is on Its Way to Voters. What You Need to Know

1 day ago
US Closes Trump-Era Office for Victims of Immigrant Crime
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
June 14, 2021

Share

SAN DIEGO — The Biden administration said Friday it has dismantled a Trump-era government office to help victims of crimes committed by immigrants, a move that symbolizes President Joe Biden’s rejection of former President Donald Trump’s repeated efforts to link immigrants to crime.

Trump created the Victim Of Immigration Crime Engagement Office, known by its acronym VOICE, by executive order during his first week in office in January 2017.

Replaced With More Inclusive Victim Support System

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said it was replacing VOICE with a “more comprehensive and inclusive victim support system.”

VOICE will be replaced by The Victims Engagement and Services Line, which will combine longstanding existing services, such as methods for people to report abuse and mistreatment in immigration detention centers and a notification system for lawyers and others with a vested interest in immigration cases.

The new office will add a service for potential recipients of visas designated for victims of human trafficking or violent crimes in the United States.

“Providing assistance to society’s most vulnerable is a core American value. All people, regardless of their immigration status, should be able to access victim services without fear,” said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Defender Calls Decision a ‘Moral Stain’ on Our Nation

Stephen Miller, a key architect of Trump’s immigration policies, called the decision to close VOICE a “moral stain on the conscience of our nation.”

He likened the new office to the Drug Enforcement Administration opening “a call center to help drug dealers get lawyers and amnesty for their crimes.”

The Department of Homeland Security “is a law enforcement agency, not a legal help center for criminals and lawbreakers,” Miller said.

Jon Feere, an ICE official during the Trump administration, said he referred a man to VOICE whose sister was killed by an intoxicated driver and that the office helped families understand the status of immigration cases.

The change of tone regarding immigration has been striking between the two administrations.

Trump’s Relentless Effort to Link Immigrants to Crime

While studies suggest immigrants are less likely to commit crime than native-born, Trump relentlessly sought to establish a link. He launched his 2016 presidential campaign by portraying Mexicans in the country illegally as violent criminals and frequently highlighted the MS-13 gang, which was started by Salvadoran immigrants.

To advance his immigration agenda, Trump invited “angel families” — people whose loved ones had been victims of crimes by immigrants — to campaign rallies and high-profile speeches.

Trump’s office for victims of violent crimes appears to have had little impact.

Its most recent quarterly report posted online for the last three months of 2018 said it fielded 781 calls during the three-month period — and that just 256 of the calls pertained to services it offered. About half were requests on the status of immigration cases, and many of the rest were referrals for assistance, such as social services to help cope with impacts of domestic violence or assault.

The office was used as a platform by the Trump administration to promote a link between immigrants and crime.

“I’ve had to hold the hand of too many mothers who lost a child to a DUI or somebody else who’s been raped by an illegal alien or someone with a nexus to immigration,” Barbara Gonzalez, the then-director of VOICE, told reporters in October 2019. “It is a problem we cannot ignore as a country.

Biden and Harris’ Conflicting Comments

In April, the Biden administration ordered U.S. officials to avoid using terms like “illegal alien” and instead use the phrase “undocumented noncitizen.”

Vice President Kamala Harris drew strong criticism from some of the administration’s pro-immigration allies for telling would-be migrants during a visit to Guatemala on Monday, “Do not come … Do not come,” and that they would be denied entry at the U.S. border with Mexico.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Fresno Crash Sends Car Into Building After Running Red Light

DON'T MISS

Fresno City Gets Extension in Herndon 4-Story Apartment Case

DON'T MISS

Atwater Prison Inmate Charged for Threatening to Kill Prosecutor’s Family

DON'T MISS

Multiple Passengers Are Killed After Bus Crashes in Western New York

DON'T MISS

Fresno Firefighters Contain Cambridge Avenue Blaze, No Injuries Reported

DON'T MISS

With Major Heat Risk Forecast, This Is a Good Weekend to Stay Indoors in Fresno

DON'T MISS

Trump Says Intel Has Agreed to Deal for US to Take 10% Equity Stake

DON'T MISS

Epstein Associate Maxwell Says She Never Saw Trump Behave Inappropriately

DON'T MISS

Wrongly Deported Migrant Abrego to Be Released Soon, Lawyer Says

DON'T MISS

Remembering Ron McCary, Who Did It All for KMJ

UP NEXT

Texas Senate Debates Redistricting Bill, Is Expected to Pass It Easily

UP NEXT

Trump: DC Mayor Bowser Must Get Act Together or Won’t Be Mayor Anymore

UP NEXT

Wall Street Soars as Powell Hints at Rate Cut in September

UP NEXT

Trump’s Tariffs Could Reduce US Deficit by $4 Trillion, CBO Estimates

UP NEXT

Pew: US Immigrant Population Declines for First Time in Nearly 60 Years

UP NEXT

Canada to Remove Many Retaliatory Tariffs on US Goods, Says Source

UP NEXT

After Joining TikTok, Trump Says He Could Extend Sale Deadline if Needed

UP NEXT

Powell, Citing Jobs Risk, Opens Door to Cuts but Doesn’t Commit

UP NEXT

FBI Agents Search Ex-Trump Adviser Bolton’s Home, Source Says

UP NEXT

More Americans Applying for Refugee Status in Canada, Data Shows

Multiple Passengers Are Killed After Bus Crashes in Western New York

8 hours ago

Fresno Firefighters Contain Cambridge Avenue Blaze, No Injuries Reported

8 hours ago

With Major Heat Risk Forecast, This Is a Good Weekend to Stay Indoors in Fresno

9 hours ago

Trump Says Intel Has Agreed to Deal for US to Take 10% Equity Stake

9 hours ago

Epstein Associate Maxwell Says She Never Saw Trump Behave Inappropriately

9 hours ago

Wrongly Deported Migrant Abrego to Be Released Soon, Lawyer Says

10 hours ago

Remembering Ron McCary, Who Did It All for KMJ

10 hours ago

I Was Preyed On for My VA Benefits. California Can Stop It

10 hours ago

Texas Senate Debates Redistricting Bill, Is Expected to Pass It Easily

10 hours ago

Trump: DC Mayor Bowser Must Get Act Together or Won’t Be Mayor Anymore

10 hours ago

Fresno Crash Sends Car Into Building After Running Red Light

A driver ran a red light Friday at the intersection of Herndon and West avenues, clipping another vehicle before crashing into a nearby buil...

6 hours ago

6 hours ago

Fresno Crash Sends Car Into Building After Running Red Light

6 hours ago

Fresno City Gets Extension in Herndon 4-Story Apartment Case

The crest of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 10, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File photo
7 hours ago

Atwater Prison Inmate Charged for Threatening to Kill Prosecutor’s Family

First responders work at the scene of a bus crash on the New York State Thruway about 30 miles east of Buffalo, N.Y., on Friday afternoon, Aug. 22, 2025. The tour bus traveling from Niagara Falls to New York City crashed on a highway outside Buffalo on Friday, killing multiple passengers, including at least one child, and leaving some people trapped beneath the vehicle, officials said. (Lauren Petracca/The New York Times)
8 hours ago

Multiple Passengers Are Killed After Bus Crashes in Western New York

On Friday, August 22, 2025, Fresno firefighters contained a house fire on East Cambridge Avenue, preventing major damage and reporting no injuries. (Fresno Fire)
8 hours ago

Fresno Firefighters Contain Cambridge Avenue Blaze, No Injuries Reported

Fresno heat hot heatwave High Humidity
9 hours ago

With Major Heat Risk Forecast, This Is a Good Weekend to Stay Indoors in Fresno

A smartphone with a displayed Intel logo is placed on a computer motherboard in this illustration taken March 6, 2023. (Reuters File)
9 hours ago

Trump Says Intel Has Agreed to Deal for US to Take 10% Equity Stake

Ghislaine Maxwell appears via video link during her arraignment hearing in Manhattan Federal Court, in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S. July 14, 2020 in this courtroom sketch. (Reuters File)
9 hours ago

Epstein Associate Maxwell Says She Never Saw Trump Behave Inappropriately

Search

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Send this to a friend