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Illegal migrant arrested for murder of Loyola student sparks sanctuary city debate
New York Assemblyman Matt Slater has criticized sanctuary city policies after the tragic murder of 18-year-old Sheridan Gorman, a student at Loyola University, by Jose Medina-Medina, an undocumented migrant from Venezuela. Slater emphasized the grieving family’s statement, which pointed to policy failures, and expressed disapproval of Chicago Alderwoman Maria Hadden’s comment that Gorman was simply in the “wrong place, wrong time.” Slater contends that the current immigration system poses risks to innocent American citizens.
An undocumented immigrant from Cuba, who has a history of multiple convictions, is now in federal custody after years of avoiding deportation, a situation attributed to lenient sanctuary city policies, federal officials disclosed on Tuesday.
Last month, Eledoro Valenzuela Rodriguez was apprehended by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at the Miami-Dade Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Florida, authorities confirmed.
At the time of his arrest, Rodriguez was facing charges of cocaine possession with intent to distribute, unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition as a felon, and trespassing, officials reported.
Rodriguez, a Cuban national, had been ordered for removal back in 1980. However, he managed to stay in the U.S. due to “lenient sentences from sanctuary states New York and Maryland,” which, according to ICE, allowed him to continue committing offenses against innocent individuals.
He previously had a final removal order lodged against him in 1980, but remained in the United States after “lenient sentences from sanctuary states New York and Maryland allowed this serial offender to keep preying on innocent people,” ICE said in a statement.
Eledoro Valenzuela Rodriguez, a Cuban national, had a final removal order in 1980 but remained in the U.S. after lenient sentences in New York and Maryland, according to ICE. (iStock)
Authorities said Rodriguez “amassed numerous convictions and charges,” including arrests for possession of controlled substances, marijuana possession, dealing cocaine, weapon possession and firearm possession by a convicted felon.
Despite the litany of charges and past convictions, Rodriguez was released from jail multiple times while living in sanctuary cities, federal authorities said.
“These policies don’t make communities safer,” Lyons added. “They make enforcement more difficult and force federal officers into more dangerous — and more public — situations. ICE will continue to enforce the law, regardless of local politics.”
It was not immediately clear if Rodriquez had retained an attorney following his arrest.
