PrintIllegal alien who murdered woman went to SF because it was a 'sanctuary city'
How nice that the city of San Francisco opens its arms to welcome anyone – legal or illegal, even murderers. The city's "compassion" toward illegal aliens has now cost a young woman her life, and questions are being asked about how Francisco Sanchez was able to avoid being deported for the 6th time, leaving him free to walk the streets and "accidentally" kill Kathryn Steinle.
Breitbart:
Five-time deportee, seven-time convicted felon Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez said in a new interview Sunday with a local ABC News affiliate that he came to San Francisco because he knew the sanctuary city would not hand him over to immigration officials.
He also claimed that he was “looking for jobs in the restaurant or roofing, landscaping, or construction.”
Lopez-Sanchez has confessed to shooting Kathryn Steinle last Wednesday at Pier 14.
Had San Francisco police not refused a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer request, Lopez-Sanchez may not have been in the United States and Steinle might still be alive.
“Did you shoot Kate Steinle, the lady who was down at Pier 14?” an ABC7 News reporterasked Lopez-Sanchez in an interview exclusive to the station. “Yes,” said Sanchez.
An ICE official told Breitbart News that ICE Enforcement and Removal had begun processing the suspect for reinstatement of removal from the U.S. in March. But instead Lopez-Sanchez was transferred on March 26 from the Bureau of Prisons in another city to the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department (SFSD) because of a drug warrant. ICE then filed the detainer request to be notified prior to Lopez-Sanchez’s release from custody.
A San Francisco court dismissed Lopez-Sanchez’s drug charges on March 27.
San Francisco and SFSD policy is to deny ICE detainer requests, barring special circumstances, such as a warrant for a suspected violent offender. The ICE detainer request was denied, and on April 15, 2015 Lopez-Sanchez was released. Two and a half months later Kate Steinle was killed.
Shouldn't a thug like Sanchez be easy to deport, easy to keep in custody? Nah – that makes too much sense for our wacky and dangerous immigration policy. The very concept of a "sanctuary city" is flawed both in logic and from a law enforcement standpoint. But when has logic ever stopped the left from showing us their superior moral vision?
There is apparently a lot of leeway granted local governments to interpret and cooperate with federal authorities on immigration cases. Republicans could pass a law denying federal funds to sanctuary cities, but the concept is popular among Hispanics, so unless there is a sea change of opinion among leading Republicans, such a law will never be passed.
Meanwhile, the tragedy of Ms. Steinle will no doubt be repeated anywhere cities see fit to ignore federal laws and lay out the welcome mat for human sewage like Sanchez.
