Justice Department prepares legal action against 384 individuals as part of broader enforcement initiative.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
The U.S. Department of Justice is preparing to pursue denaturalization cases against hundreds of individuals, marking a significant increase in efforts to revoke citizenship obtained through alleged fraud.
According to reporting by The New York Times, federal officials have identified 384 naturalized citizens whose cases may be brought before the courts. The initiative is expected to involve civil attorneys across 39 U.S. attorney offices, expanding responsibility beyond the department’s traditional immigration litigation specialists.
Officials familiar with the matter said the individuals selected for review are part of a broader effort to increase enforcement under existing federal statutes that allow citizenship to be revoked if it was obtained through misrepresentation or concealment of disqualifying information. Certain criminal convictions may also serve as grounds for denaturalization.
Matthew Tragesser said the department is increasing referrals from the Department of Homeland Security, describing the effort as an unprecedented expansion. “The Department of Justice is laser-focused on rooting out criminal aliens defrauding the naturalization process,” Tragesser said.
Abigail Jackson emphasized that the initiative is grounded in current law. “Citizenship fraud is a serious crime; anyone who has broken the law and obtained citizenship through fraud and deceit will be held accountable,” she said.
The process of denaturalization requires the government to present evidence in federal court, often making cases complex and lengthy. Historically, such cases have been limited in number. Between 1990 and 2017, the federal government filed 305 denaturalization cases, averaging roughly 11 annually. From 2017 through late last year, slightly more than 120 additional cases were pursued.
The current effort follows earlier guidance directing the Department of Homeland Security to refer more than 200 potential cases per month for review. During an internal meeting, Francey Hakes described the 384 cases as an initial phase, noting that additional referrals could follow.
Legal analysts say the broadened approach could have wider implications. Amanda Frost said the initiative may raise concerns among naturalized citizens. “The message it sends is that naturalized citizens don’t have the same rights and stability as native-born citizens,” Frost said.
Others have pointed to potential strain on legal resources as civil divisions take on additional caseloads typically handled by specialized units. Those divisions commonly oversee matters such as healthcare fraud, civil rights enforcement, and asset forfeiture.
The Justice Department has already filed denaturalization actions in several cases involving individuals accused of misrepresentation or criminal conduct, including cases involving fraud and other offenses.
Lucas Guttentag cautioned that broader use of denaturalization powers could affect long-standing legal norms. “Genuine fraud when it actually occurs has always been aggressively pursued,” Guttentag said. “This kind of mass denaturalization campaign will be based on a distortion of the law and is another transparent effort to destabilize long-established principles of U.S. citizenship.”
Naturalized citizens must undergo extensive screening processes, including background checks, biometric verification, and civics testing. In 2024, more than 818,000 individuals completed the process to become U.S. citizens.
Officials have not released detailed information about the specific cases included in the current review, and the legal proceedings are expected to unfold in federal courts nationwide.