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The Minnesota Board of Pardons made a unanimous, exhaustive decision to pardon Tou Lue Vang — a decision backed by the victim herself, who wrote that she forgives him and has made peace with what happened. Vang came to the U.S. as a refugee child, committed no serious crimes after his conviction and spent decades rebuilding his life. Reducing this careful, multi-factor clemency process to a political attack ignores the victim's voice and the board's clear standards.
Pardoning a man who repeatedly sexually assaulted a 10-year-old child and then tried to justify it as a cultural norm is an inexcusable failure to protect the public. The pardon wiped Tou Lue Vang's record clean just days before his scheduled deportation, shielding a convicted child predator from removal. Sanctuary politicians choosing to protect criminals like Vang over the safety of children expose where their priorities lie.