Licking Today

Knox County Jail officials are not tracking whether inmates are illegal aliens, or U.S. Citizens.

The jail confirmed to Licking Today on Tuesday May 2 that it doesn’t record the citizenship of perpetrators housed there, in response to a Freedom of Information Request.

On Tuesday May 2, Licking Today asked the jail for a list of illegal alien inmates and the taxpayer cost of housing them. Jail officials say they don’t calculate the cost of illegal aliens awaiting trial at the jail for their crimes, versus the cost for U.S. Citizens.

Knox County Jail had 79 inmates in its general population as of July 10, 2024.

"Sanctuary" policies in areas like Franklin County and Hamilton County, Ohio, limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities, potentially conflicting with federal law and the U.S. Constitution. Critics argue these policies endanger public safety by hindering ICE from deporting criminal aliens, putting all residents at risk. Sanctuary cities have become a hot topic of political debate amid the worsening migrant crisis at the southern border.

In March, the sheriff of Butler County, Ohio reported that his jail had housed 999 illegal aliens since July 1, 2021 at a cost of $1,757 per inmate, or $1.8 million to taxpayers.

An Oct. 2020 U.S. Department of Justice report estimated that, at the 2019, there were 51,074 “known or suspected” illegal aliens in U.S. federal jails and that the average cost to house a prisoner was $88.19 per day. The report found that housing illegal aliens in these jails costs U.S. taxpayers $4.5 million per day and $1.64 billion per year.