I am writing in response to a letter in The Leader on Feb. 5 regarding illegal immigrants and the need for sheriffs and other state and locally elected officials to enforce the law. The letter writer stated that “Obama and Biden had their pick and choose law enforcement.” This is not fact. We, the people, vote for the governor, attorneys general, and the county commissioners — those individuals are not chosen by any president.

For the letter writer to intimate that only the Trump Administration protects the safety of the American people and the Obama and Biden Administration did not, is also not borne out by facts. Figures on the US Customs and Border Protection site, show arrests and convictions peaked for non-citizens during the Biden Administration.

And, it is important to note that there is no evidence that immigrants are more likely commit to crimes than US born citizens. Citizens and non-citizens are arrested by law enforcement when they commit crimes, and no matter what your political views most would support this. Being an undocumented immigrant is a civil violation not a crime.

It is important for all of us to understand that no matter what a person’s immigration status is they have a constitutional right to due process which means that law enforcement cannot arrest them from their homes, schools, places of worship, or health care facilities, without reasonable suspicion of a crime.

I want an Administration that does not target people for their documentation or lack thereof, and instead without fanfare, deports violent criminals only. I want an Administration that supports government agencies to provide accurate, reliable data so voters can make their own knowledgeable decisions about who they want to have in charge of making and enforcing their laws.

Kathie Wilkinson

Port Townsend