Mary Ann Mendoza, the mother of a police officer who was killed by a drunken illegal alien, has confronted Democratic lawmakers during a hearing on a Republican bill that would allow Americans to sue sanctuary jurisdictions.
During her testimony at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday, Mary Ann Mendoza, the head of Angel Families pressure group, said: “Until one of you who supports sanctuary policies or any elected official shoving these sanctuary policies on us, are directly impacted by illegal alien crime, you will never understand the depth of pain, grief, and hopelessness that they create.”
She argued that sanctuary policies are adopted without voter approval and that many law enforcement officers are against releasing criminal illegal immigrants from jails.
“Americans are being victimised and left behind by the very officials they voted into office and who made an oath to protect and uphold the law. This includes immigration law,” she said.
“Americans are being marginalised as collateral damage by this incredibly dangerous mind-set that illegal alien criminals deserve above-the-law protections while they remain illegally present in our country.”
Mary Ann Mendoza’s 32-year-old son was killed on an Arizona road in a head-on collision with a drunk illegal immigrant who had driven over 35 miles in oncoming traffic on four different freeways. It emerged that the immigrant, who also died from injuries sustained in the crash, was convicted of several crimes in Colorado in 1994 but wasn’t deported due to sanctuary laws.
After the tragic loss of her son, Mendoza co-founded Angel Families in order to fight illegal immigration. The group’s female members are often referred to as “Angel Moms.”
They specifically blame sanctuary policies and a subsequent lack of law enforcement for the death of their relatives. Mendoza said her Twitter account was suspended in July after she made a series of posts calling out illegal aliens and sanctuary city policies.
During the hearing, she recounted the story of her son and mentioned some similar cases, including the death of Aaron Hampton, who was shot by a repeat offender from Mexico living illegally in the US, and Jonathan West Jr., who was killed in a traffic accident allegedly caused by an illegal immigrant.
The proposed legislation – Justice for Victims of Sanctuary Cities Act – was introduced by two Republican lawmakers in July and aims to give the victims of crimes committed by illegal immigrants 10 years ago or less the right to file lawsuits against the sanctuary jurisdiction where the crime occurred. Democrats oppose the bill.
There are currently nine sanctuary states and around 200 cities and counties across the US that limit their cooperation with federal immigration enforcement agents to protect illegal immigrants, as well as 12 states that prohibit sanctuary policies.
Under sanctuary policies, many jails release illegal immigrants who have been convicted or charged with a crime, while the Immigration and Customs Enforcement is not notified about that. According to Republican Congressman Mo Brooks, around 2,000 Americans die at the hands of illegal aliens every year.
