According to the Associated Press, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva has kept his promise. He is limiting the number of crimes an illegal immigrant can be convicted of that qualify for transfer upon release to federal immigration enforcement for deportation.
In an earlier article, I glibly guessed he’d reduce the number of qualifying offenses to 0 from 151. I’m happy to say I was wrong—at least, for now. The sheriff has eliminated only 50 misdemeanor crimes that currently qualify to hand illegal alien convicts over to be deported by ICE.
Still, I’d offer two concerns: One, it wouldn’t surprise me to learn the sheriff would eventually like to limit it to zero. Two, it would also not surprise me if, further, he reduces the number incrementally until there are no misdemeanor crimes for which his agency will turn illegal immigrant criminals over to immigration.
California’s illegal immigrant convict exemption from criminal deportation law (Sanctuary State) already reduced the number of qualifying violations for deportation. Now, Sheriff Villanueva’s new criminal illegal alien protections exceeds even the sanctuary state effort. As an example the AP offered that the sheriff will now protect from deportation those illegal aliens convicted of property destruction.
Now, you may say an illegal alien who committed such a “minor” crime deserves a second chance. But that’s not what’s happening. The sheriff has extended his protection cloak to illegal alien vandals with prior convictions. Having done police work for a long time, I know that for property destruction to be a crime, it must be intentional, negligent, or reckless. And, I’d offer, to commit vandalism multiple times is certainly intentional. And wouldn’t it be logical to assume the illegal alien repeat vandal is likely to reoffend?
Yet, the sheriff has chosen to protect illegal immigrant criminals over past and future victims who have and who will continue to suffer property damage at the hands of an illegal alien criminal. It’s also logical to assume a person who repeatedly commits vandalism probably also commits other crimes. And, yes, Sheriff Villanueva and other supporters of illegal immigration, there is a difference when a victim suffers at the hands of a criminal who shouldn’t be in the U.S. in the first place to even commit a crime.
