New York Governor Kathy Hochul has outdone herself.
At a time when violent crime, illegal immigration, and public safety dominate national concerns, the governor of New York decided her top priority was granting clemency to an illegal immigrant with a manslaughter conviction.
Yes, you read that correctly.
Hochul pardoned Somchith Vatthanavong, a 52-year-old illegal immigrant who was convicted as a teenager of killing a man in a Brooklyn pool hall. By offering him a pardon, Hochul effectively cleared the path for him to stay in the United States and avoid deportation.
Vatthanavong shot and killed a man outside that pool hall in 1990. He called it self-defense. The court didn’t buy it. He was convicted of manslaughter and criminal possession of a firearm and served 14 years behind bars. After his release, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement flagged him for removal, as any reasonable person would expect. After all, if you’re not an American citizen and you commit a crime that serious on American soil, deportation seems like an obvious consequence.
But Hochul disagreed. Last month, the governor stepped in with a pardon, which not only eliminated the conviction that triggered his deportation order but also allowed him to reopen his immigration case entirely.
On July 1 — the day before Mr. Vatthanavong had a mandatory immigration appointment that his lawyers believed would lead to his arrest — Ms. Hochul signed a certificate granting him an unconditional pardon, “including offering relief from removal.”
Mr. Vatthanavong was portrayed by his family and supporters as a rehabilitated man who had paid his debt to society for a deadly mistake from his youth. His lawyers said the pardon had blocked Mr. Vatthanavong’s deportation and reverted his status back to legal permanent resident.
“It’s lifted a huge weight off my shoulders,” Mr. Vatthanavong, who goes by Sammy, said in a phone interview on Thursday. “I’m grateful.”
The New York Times, which described Hochul as “a moderate Democrat,” also portrayed Vatthanavong as a legal resident—yet quietly noted that Hochul, in a departure from her usual practice, didn’t issue a press release when she pardoned him six weeks ago, unlike the 94 others whose pardons or commutations she had publicized. I guess the paper didn’t want to connect the dots.
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The U.S. Department of Homeland Security responded harshly to the move. In an unusually public rebuke, DHS targeted Hochul directly on X, condemning her for prioritizing the protection of a criminal illegal alien over the safety of New Yorkers. The department emphasized that Vatthanavong should not have had the privilege of remaining in the country. DHS made clear that President Trump and Secretary Kristi Noem remain committed to protecting Americans and removing dangerous criminals from the nation.
.@GovKathyHochul, your shameful secret is out.
Rather than putting New Yorkers first, you’re protecting a criminal illegal alien KILLER with a rap sheet including convictions for manslaughter and criminal possession of a firearm.
If you are a convicted criminal alien, you… pic.twitter.com/anXAXECvjg
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) August 16, 2025
This case stands as a symbol of how far Democrats will go to subvert immigration enforcement. Hochul once cooperated with ICE; now, she’s actively working against them to keep convicted killers in the state just to resist Trump. That’s not compassion—it’s reckless disregard for public safety. And it sends a dangerous message: non-citizens who commit violent crimes might just find a sympathetic governor willing to erase their records if the politics line up.
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