Updated

Updated · Fox News · Jul 17

Rubio Deports 42-Year-Old Tou Lue Vang After Walz Pardoned Convicted Child Rapist

Updated

Updated · Fox News · Jul 17

Rubio Deports 42-Year-Old Tou Lue Vang After Walz Pardoned Convicted Child Rapist

Q: Can a state's act of forgiveness for a crime be overruled by federal deportation policy?

Yes. A state pardon can remove or soften the state criminal consequences of a conviction, but it does not control federal immigration enforcement. Immigration is a federal matter. States decide guilt, sentencing, and clemency for state crimes, but the federal government decides whether a non-citizen may remain in the country. That means a governor or state pardon board cannot bind the State Department, DHS, or immigration courts on visa status, removability, or deportation. A pardon can still matter. In some cases, it may erase the specific conviction as a ground for removal. Minnesota officials made that point in Vang’s case, saying a pardon can remove a conviction as a deportation trigger. But it does not wipe out every immigration problem. If a person is otherwise unlawfully present, has a final removal order, or loses visa status, federal authorities can still deport them. That is what happened here. Tou Lue Vang had a long-standing federal removal order, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked his visa status, giving federal authorities an independent basis to proceed. Once Laos accepted his return, the deportation could be carried out despite the state clemency. So the practical answer is that a state’s act of forgiveness is not final in immigration matters. It may affect one legal basis for deportation, but federal agencies retain broad authority to revoke status and enforce removal under federal law.

2 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 17

Tou Lue Vang, a 42-year-old Laotian national convicted of repeatedly raping a 10-year-old girl, was deported to Laos after Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked his visa.
The removal overrode clemency granted June 10 by Minnesota’s Board of Pardons—Gov. Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison and Chief Justice Natalie Hudson—which DHS had feared could block deportation.
Walz defended the pardon at a Tuesday press conference, saying deporting Vang did not make the country safer, while still calling the crimes “horrific.”
State Department officials sharply rebuked Walz, saying Rubio’s action prevented a foreign sex offender from remaining in the United States despite the state pardon.