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Rafael Carranza, Arizona Republic Published 4:54 p.m. ET April 11, 2017 | Updated 46 minutes ago

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has announced a get-tough approach to immigration prosecutions during a tour of the U.S.-Mexico border. (April 11) AP

Attorney General Jeff Sessions in Nogales, Ariz.(Photo: Ross D. Franklin, AP)

NOGALES, Ariz. The nation's top prosecutor outlined an expansion of the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration Tuesday to include directing federal prosecutors to bring felony charges against immigrants suspected of making repeated illegal entriesto the United States.

Undocumented entry cases have been previously charged as misdemeanors.

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, in his first trip to the U.S.-Mexico border, detailed the changes as an attempt to "establish lawfulness in our immigration system.''

"This is a new era," Sessions said. "This is the Trump era.The lawlessness, the abdication of the duty to enforce our immigration laws, and the catch-and-release practices of old are over."

In a memo to U.S. attorneys across the country, Sessions said prosecutors must consider:

Charging individuals for "bringing in and harboring certain aliens."

Charging undocumented immigrants with a felony "if they unlawfully enter or attempt to enter a second time and certain aggravating circumstances are present."

When possible, charging undocumented immigrants "with document fraud and aggravated identity theft."

Make prosecution of assault on a federal law-enforcement officer "a top priority."

Sessions also announced a plan to hire and deploy 50 new immigration judges to the border this year and 75 more next year to address a massive backlog in immigration appeals.

The administration's most vocal advocate for tougher border enforcement measures, Sessions' trip to the region comes as the Department of Homeland Security recorded a 40% decline in illegal crossings along the southwest border during the first two months of the year.

Sessions called the decline "unprecedented,'' coinciding with the administration's roll out of aborder security strategy, including the planned construction of a border wall.

Despite the declining apprehensions, Sessions defended the need for a wall, describing it as "a force multiplier'' to deter future illegal immigration.

"There is no doubt that the barrier, the wall, will have a great and positive impact,'' he said.

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In his new charging directive to federal prosecutors, Sessions said felony prosecutions would be recommended for repeatillegal immigrants, "especially where indicators of gang affiliation, a risk to public safety or criminal history are present.''

Civil rights advocates, however, characterized Sessions' directive as an attempt to intimidate immigrant communities.

Attorney General Sessions is grandstanding at the border in an attempt to look tough and scare immigrants,'' said Frank Sharry, executive director of America's Voice Education Fund. "Its yet another example of the Trump administration treating all immigrants as threats and as criminals.''

Josh Breisblatt, a policy analyst at the American Immigration Council, said the attorney general's prosecution directive effectively makes illegal entry prosecutions a national priority, beyond the border states where the majority of cases are brought.

"This is a waste of resources,'' Breisblatt said. "It seems to be a further attempt to link immigration and crime.''

Contributing: Kevin Johnson and Alan Gomez

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Sessions directs felony charges against repeat illegal immigrants - USA TODAY