Like thousands and thousands of others, I watched with intrigue the primary—and probably solely—Donald Trump and Kamala Harris presidential debate. One of the vital vital subjects mentioned was unlawful immigration and the way the Biden/Harris administration allowed thousands and thousands of unlawful immigrants to enter the nation, largely via the southern border.
For those who’re prepared to flee your nation and try to enter America illegally, issues have to be dire at dwelling. Perhaps job alternatives are nonexistent, maybe the federal government has confiscated your enterprise, there is perhaps a civil conflict, or possibly you are even operating from the legislation.
Since San Francisco is a sanctuary metropolis, many unlawful immigrants find yourself right here. A sanctuary metropolis is one whose municipal legal guidelines have a tendency to guard undocumented immigrants from deportation or prosecution, regardless of federal immigration legislation.
A few of these unlawful immigrants, like these from Honduras, have a number of arrests but proceed promoting fentanyl on our downtown streets with out repercussion. This epidemic is a failure of each our political leaders and our ultra-liberal judges, who preserve releasing these criminals regardless of their a number of convictions.
We want new management that can be more durable on crime and unlawful immigration. Permitting drug sellers and thieves to repeatedly commit crimes will not be empathy or compassion; it harms others.
Though I have never overdosed on medication, been shot, or had my automotive home windows smashed in 12 years, I did have a possible pricey encounter that was doubtless with an unlawful immigrant.
My Run-In With a Doubtless Unlawful Immigrant
In the future, I used to be driving my four-year-old daughter to swim classes after I reached a three-way intersection with cease indicators. The automotive in entrance of me, an outdated Toyota Prius, had the correct of approach and began to go. As I moved ahead to take my place in entrance of the road, the motive force instantly slammed on her brakes in a panic, inflicting me to stumble upon her. I used to be going lower than 3 mph.
After she lastly gathered the braveness to drive ahead, I adopted her, and we each pulled over to test for harm. I requested her why she had stopped so abruptly when she had the correct of approach, however she could not perceive me. A Hispanic man close by kindly translated for us.
He defined that she panicked when she noticed a truck method the cease signal, although it was her flip to go. She remained visibly anxious as we spoke. After I requested if she needed to change insurance coverage info and IDs, she declined, doubtless as a result of she did not have any.
She pointed to her bumper and mentioned it was nice. I checked mine and noticed no apparent harm both. Then, I questioned if, regardless of her sudden cease, the accident was my fault. Lastly, I additionally considered my pal who simply skilled an insurance coverage fraud rip-off the place the opposite driver, regardless of being the one at fault, tried to sue my pal for $10,000.
$3,500 in Damages
We have been barely operating on time for my daughter’s swim time, so I agreed that every part was nice, and the girl appeared relieved earlier than driving off. However later, after swimming, I seen a crack on my bumper. Ugh. What a bummer.
I went to the dealership to inquire about the price of changing my bumper, and so they quoted me $2,700 earlier than tax and labor. The ultimate value may simply exceed $3,500, so I made a decision to not repair it. Hooray for driving a nine-year-old automotive.
If somebody can’t converse English, doesn’t have a authorities ID, and has no automotive insurance coverage (it is legally required in California), it’s affordable to imagine they is perhaps an unlawful immigrant. She doubtless wouldn’t have had the $3,500 to cowl the price anyway if I attempted to pursue damages. If the legislation acquired concerned, possibly she would have needed to depart the nation.
Finally, my encounter with this unlawful immigrant turned an expense I needed to bear. Fortuitously, I can afford it if I resolve to repair my bumper. However what if I couldn’t?
Additionally, what if, as a substitute of an accident, it had been a violent encounter? It would not be truthful to depart my household and not using a husband and father due to another person’s prison habits.
Harder on Crime, Please
In 2015, Kate Steinle was strolling along with her father on a busy pier in San Francisco when she was shot and killed by Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, an undocumented immigrant with seven felony convictions who had been deported 5 occasions. Regardless of this, Lopez-Sanchez was found not guilty two years later. WTF.
On December 31, 2020, Troy McAlister—a repeat offender—struck and killed two pedestrians, Hanako Abe and Elizabeth Platt. McAlister had been arrested 5 occasions that yr and served solely 11 days in jail. His launch was a part of a plea deal brokered by then-District Lawyer Chesa Boudin, a public defender centered on justice reform.
McAlister’s launch, regardless of his prison monitor report, was appalling. San Francisco voters had sufficient, and in June 2022, ~60% voted to recall Chesa Boudin. Brooke Jenkins was appointed as the brand new District Lawyer.
This recall sparked hope that San Francisco would lastly take a more durable stance on crime. Then, in November 2023, the town cleaned up downtown for the Asian-Pacific Financial Cooperation (APEC) convention, exhibiting that leaders may handle crime and public security—in the event that they needed to.
Why Are Leaders Gentle on Crime?
It’s baffling why some leaders go straightforward on those that commit heinous crimes. Is it guilt for ancestral wrongdoings? Is it the misguided perception that folks can all the time reform? The reply might lie of their private backgrounds.
Chesa Boudin, Former San Francisco District Lawyer
Chesa Boudin’s parents have been members of the novel Climate Underground. When Chesa was 14 months outdated, his mother and father left him with a babysitter to take part in an armored automotive theft. The botched heist left two cops and a Brink’s truck guard lifeless.
Boudin spent a lot of his life visiting his mother and father in jail, gaining an uncommon perspective on the prison justice system. His mother and father have been convicted of homicide and theft, however to Chesa, they have been loving and type.
It’s no surprise he turned an advocate for prison justice reform, striving to save lots of others from the cruel sentences his mother and father endured. The issue was, Boudin was extra empathetic in the direction of the prison than the sufferer.
London Breed, San Francisco Mayor
After Mayor Ed Lee’s sudden death in 2017, London Breed turned San Francisco’s mayor in July 2018. As we speak, she faces criticism for being mushy on crime, defunding the police, and overseeing corruption. The November 2024 mayoral race is tight as folks need change.
Breed’s background might clarify her stance. She grew up in low-income housing surrounded by crime.
Her brother, Napoleon Brown, is serving a 40-year sentence for killing Lenties White in 2000. In 2005, a San Francisco jury discovered that Brown had pushed White, a 25-year-old mom of two, out of a automotive into site visitors on the Golden Gate Bridge whereas they have been fleeing a theft.
Breed argues that her brother has been handled unfairly by the justice system. She factors out that as a consequence of California’s Three Strikes legislation, Brown is serving double the same old sentence for manslaughter and lesser crimes. Nevertheless, final yr he was caught with heroin at Solano State Jail, which resulted in an extra two years being added to his sentence.
Naturally, London Breed loves her brother, who would by no means attempt to rob or hurt her. Given her private connection, it is comprehensible why she is perhaps extra lenient on crime and keep away from alienating a few of her supporters.
Professional Authorized Immigration
There’s an extended, arduous course of to turn into a authorized U.S. citizen, and we would like individuals who respect our legal guidelines and contribute positively to society.
We can’t enable unlawful immigrants, particularly these with prison histories, to overwhelm our cities. The repercussions will influence law-abiding residents in varied methods—from minor incidents like unpaid fender benders to extra critical crimes corresponding to theft, assault, and even homicide.
Earlier than I had a spouse and children, I didn’t suppose a lot about unlawful immigration or lawlessness. I’ve been in loads of fights and know tips on how to defend myself. Nevertheless, now that I’m a husband and father, my household’s security is my high precedence since they will’t shield themselves as simply. I hope that after elected, both Harris or Trump will make security a high concern.
Overseas-born employees make important contributions to our financial system, however they need to be welcomed provided that they enter the nation legally. We’ve got too many issues of our personal to take care of.
Reader Questions
What are your ideas on unlawful immigration? Why do you suppose the Biden/Harris administration wasn’t more durable on unlawful immigration? Have you ever ever had a damaging expertise with an unlawful immigrant? And what are your total ideas on the presidential debate?
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