An inexcusable death | The Fresno Bee

Victor Davis Hanson did a great job of explaining the problem with sanctuary cities, however, he missed the point when it came to the death of Kate Steinle.

Ms. Steinle was killed by Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez on July 1. He was not just another deportable alien that San Francisco refused to turn over to ICE. He had been serving time in a federal prison on an immigration violation. He had been deported five times previously and was about to be deported again.

In March, Mr. Lopez-Sanchez was turned over to San Francisco upon a request that he be tried for an old marijuana charge. This was in keeping with immigration policy of having illegal aliens prosecuted for crimes committed in the United States before facing deportation.

However, the San Francisco district attorney later decided not to prosecute and in April, the sheriff’s office released him, despite the fact that immigration wanted him back. This was not a sanctuary city case of not complying with an immigration detainer. This was a case where San Francisco requested an alien in federal custody, who was about to be deported, and then let him go. This is inexcusable.