Gruenhagen: Walz and Ellison pardon convicted sex offender to prevent him from being deported

Friends and neighbors,

Governor Walz and Attorney General Ellison recently pardoned a man who repeatedly sexually assaulted a 10-year-old girl. They issued the pardon so this criminal could avoid being deported.

This is now the third time in two months that Minnesota's Board of Pardons has stepped in to help a violent criminal immigrant dodge removal from the country.

Last week’s case involves Tou Lue Vang, a man from Laos who was convicted in 2006 of first-degree criminal sexual conduct against a child. Court records show Vang assaulted the girl repeatedly between 2002 and 2004. At one point, he offered her $10 to stay quiet. When police interviewed him, he tried to defend himself by saying it was normal in his culture to marry and have sex with girls as young as 12. He even claimed the victim should be arrested too, if you can imagine that.

After his conviction, a federal immigration judge ordered Vang removed from the United States and he was finally set to be deported this year. The Minnesota Clemency Review Commission voted on June 10 to pardon him, wiping out the conviction that made him removable.

The board says part of the reason for the pardon was a statement of support from the victim, but as the Star Tribune noted in their story, the victim was pressured by her family.

In May, the pardon board issued a pardon for Jai Vang, a Laotian man convicted of aggravated robbery, including robbing a business at gunpoint. Before that, the board pardoned Ricky Chandee, another Laotian immigrant convicted of assault, in an emergency meeting held one day before his scheduled deportation. Both times, the board rushed the process to prevent them from being deported.

Governor Walz sits on this board alongside Attorney General Ellison and Supreme Court Chief Justice Natalie Hudson. Over and over, they have used their pardon power to shield people with violent criminal records from federal immigration law, putting Minnesota citizens in danger.

Gov. Walz and Attorney General Ellison are putting their hatred of President Trump and immigration enforcement ahead of Minnesotans’ safety, it’s as simple as that. Public safety must come first. Instead, this board keeps finding reasons to let violent offenders stay in the country, no matter how serious their crimes were.

As always, thank you for staying engaged. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.

God Bless,

Sen. Glenn Gruenhagen

Legal Disclaimer:

EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.