From New York Post · · 1m 40s
Hochul pardons felon to block deportation precedent
New York's governor granted clemency to a violent offender to prevent a Supreme Court case on immigration detention.
In brief
New York's governor granted clemency to a violent offender to prevent a Supreme Court case on immigration detention. Governor Hochul pardoned a Dominican man convicted of assault to prevent the Supreme Court from ruling that ICE can detain deportable criminals without bond hearings. Originally reported by New York…
Hochul pardons assault convict
Governor Kathy Hochul granted clemency to Keisy Guerrero Mariano, a Dominican who served two years for second-degree assault. His 2015 conviction stood out among five others pardoned the same day.
The pardon's real purpose
Trump's Justice Department planned to use Guerrero Mariano's case to establish that deportable criminals aren't entitled to bond hearings. Hochul's pardon collapsed the appeals process before it reached the Supreme Court.
Bond hearings delay deportations
Bond hearings are an exploited weakness in immigration security. They drag out the legal process and let detainees get released temporarily, then disappear by skipping their next hearing.
“Bond hearings are an easily exploited weakness in America's immigration security”
ICE arrested him in 2020
Immigration officials detained Guerrero Mariano to deport him based on his criminal record. They had to release him in 2022 due to a COVID-related injunction for people with certain medical conditions.
Another test case collapsed
A Jamaican national convicted of sexually abusing a child under 11 left the country voluntarily. His self-deportation made his claim to a bond hearing moot, removing another potential Supreme Court case.
Solicitor General fights back
John Sauer says he won't let Hochul's move succeed. He plans to find another case to bring the detention and bond hearing question before the Supreme Court.
“Mandatory deportation should mean just that.”
Americans should come first
Hochul was elected by American citizens but is protecting foreign criminals from deportation. Even legal immigrants who commit serious crimes should be expelled promptly.
“She should put them first, not foreigners who commit crimes while they're here”
The big picture
Governor Hochul pardoned a Dominican man convicted of assault to prevent the Supreme Court from ruling that ICE can detain deportable criminals without bond hearings.
