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Deport criminal immigrants to save guys like Grant

Letter date: 
Sunday, July 5, 2015
Letter publisher: 
USA TODAY
Letter author: 
EJ Montini
Letter link: 
Read the original letter
Letter body: 

Criminal illegal aliens must be deported before they attack hardworking citizens like 21-year-old Grant.

I don't know anyone who wasn't horrified and heart-broken when news broke that 21-year-old Grant Ronnebeck, a good kid working hard, was shot dead while clerking at a QuikTrip store in Mesa in January.

I don't know anyone who wasn't angry and outraged to learn that the man eventually charged with the murder, Apolinar Altamirano, was in the country illegally and already had been convicted of felony burglary.

Good people disagree about a lot when it comes to immigration issues.

But I don't know anyone who wants to allow immigrants convicted of serious crimes to stay here...

Since Grant's death we've learned that 121 undocumented immigrants who were released while awaiting deportation after committing crimes were later charged with homicides between 2010 and 2014....

Allowing convicted criminals or those who are caught up in cases involving serious crimes to remain in the country not only puts people at risk,...

EJ Montini is a columnist at the Arizona Republic, where this column was first published.

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