[House Hearing, 119 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                THE HUMAN TOLL OF SANCTUARY POLICIES:
                  STORIES FROM VICTIMS AND FAMILIES
=======================================================================

                                HEARING

                               BEFORE THE

                       SUBCOMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT

                                 OF THE

                       COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY

                     U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                    ONE HUNDRED NINETEENTH CONGRESS

                             SECOND SESSION

                               __________

                        THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2026

                               __________

                           Serial No. 119-63

                               __________

         Printed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary
         
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]          

               Available via: http://judiciary.house.gov
               
                                __________
                                
                 U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
63-454                   WASHINGTON : 2026
=======================================================================
              
                       COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY

                        JIM JORDAN, Ohio, Chair

DARRELL ISSA, California             JAMIE RASKIN, Maryland, Ranking 
ANDY BIGGS, Arizona                      Member
TOM McCLINTOCK, California           JERROLD NADLER, New York
THOMAS P. TIFFANY, Wisconsin         ZOE LOFGREN, California
THOMAS MASSIE, Kentucky              STEVE COHEN, Tennessee
CHIP ROY, Texas                      HENRY C. ``HANK'' JOHNSON, Jr., 
SCOTT FITZGERALD, Wisconsin              Georgia
BEN CLINE, Virginia                  TED LIEU, California
LANCE GOODEN, Texas                  PRAMILA JAYAPAL, Washington
JEFFERSON VAN DREW, New Jersey       J. LUIS CORREA, California
TROY E. NEHLS, Texas                 MARY GAY SCANLON, Pennsylvania
BARRY MOORE, Alabama                 JOE NEGUSE, Colorado
HARRIET M. HAGEMAN, Wyoming          LUCY McBATH, Georgia
LAUREL M. LEE, Florida               DEBORAH K. ROSS, North Carolina
WESLEY HUNT, Texas                   BECCA BALINT, Vermont
RUSSELL FRY, South Carolina          JESUS G. ``CHUY'' GARCIA, Illinois
KEVIN KILEY, California              SYDNEY KAMLAGER-DOVE, California
GLENN GROTHMAN, Wisconsin            JARED MOSKOWITZ, Florida
BRAD KNOTT, North Carolina           DANIEL S. GOLDMAN, New York
MARK HARRIS, North Carolina          JASMINE CROCKETT, Texas
ROBERT F. ONDER, Jr., Missouri       Vacancy
DEREK SCHMIDT, Kansas
BRANDON GILL, Texas
MICHAEL BAUMGARTNER, Washington

                                 ------                                

                       SUBCOMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT

                 JEFFERSON VAN DREW, New Jersey, Chair

BARRY MOORE, Alabama                 JASMINE CROCKETT, Texas, Ranking 
ROBERT F. ONDER, Jr., Missouri           Member
DEREK SCHMIDT, Kansas                JARED MOSKOWITZ, Florida
BRANDON GILL, Texas                  HENRY C. ``HANK'' JOHNSON, Jr., 
                                         Georgia

               CHRISTOPHER HIXON, Majority Staff Director
                ARTHUR EWENCZYK, Minority Staff Director
                           
                           C O N T E N T S

                              ----------                              

                        Thursday, April 16, 2026
                           OPENING STATEMENTS

                                                                   Page

The Honorable Jefferson Van Drew, Chair of the Subcommittee on 
  Oversight from the State of New Jersey.........................     1
The Honorable Jasmine Crockett, Ranking Member of the 
  Subcommittee on Oversight from the State of Texas..............     3
The Honorable Jim Jordan, Chair of the Committee on the Judiciary 
  from the State of Ohio.........................................     6
The Honorable Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the Committee on 
  the Judiciary from the State of Maryland.......................     6

                               WITNESSES

Patricia Fox, Mother of Carissa Aspnes
  Oral Testimony.................................................    10
  Prepared Testimony.............................................    12
Jennifer Heiling, Mother of Brady Heiling
  Oral Testimony.................................................    17
  Prepared Testimony.............................................    19
Antonio Romanucci, Founding Partner, Romanucci & Blandin
  Oral Testimony.................................................    24
  Prepared Testimony.............................................    26
Laura Wilkerson, Mother of Joshua Wilkerson
  Oral Testimony.................................................    30
  Prepared Testimony.............................................    33

          LETTERS, STATEMENTS, ETC. SUBMITTED FOR THE HEARING

All materials submitted for the record by the Committee on the 
  Judiciary are listed below.....................................    44

Materials submitted by the Honorable Derek Schmidt, a Member of 
  the Subcommittee on Oversight from the State of Kansas, for the 
  record
    A press release entitled, ``ICE Asks Governor Pritzker and 
        Chicago Sanctuary Politicians to Not Release Criminal 
        Illegal Alien Accused of Killing 18-Year-Old Loyola 
        College Student,'' Mar. 22, 2026, U.S. Department of 
        Homeland Security
    A press release entitled, ``Mayor Frey's Sanctuary Policies 
        Release Criminal Illegal Aliens From Jails Back onto 
        Minneapolis Streets to Terrorize More Innocent 
        Americans,'' Jan. 14, 2026, U.S. Department of Homeland 
        Security
    An article entitled, ``Illinois father says Pritzker shows 
        `indifference' to his daughter being killed by illegal 
        immigrant,'' Jan. 15, 2026, Fox News
    Testimony from Zoey Heiling, sister of Brady Heiling, Apr. 
        16, 2026
    Testimony from Korri Heiling, sister of Brady Heiling, Apr. 
        16, 2026
    Testimony from John and Debra Hosek, grandparents of Brady 
        Heiling, Apr. 16, 2026
    Testimony from Agnes Gibboney, mother of Ronald da Silva, 
        Apr. 16, 2026
    Testimony from Joe Abraham, father of Katie Abraham, Apr. 16, 
        2026
Materials submitted by the Honorable Jasmine Crockett, Ranking 
  Member of the Subcommittee on Oversight from the State of 
  Texas, for the record
    An article entitled, ``TribBlog: Houston No Sanctuary, Annise 
        Parker, Says,'' Mar. 29, 2010, The Texas Tribune
    An article entitled, ``Is Houston a sanctuary for illegal 
        immigrants?'' Dec. 23, 2007, Houston Chronicle
Materials submitted by the Honorable Brandon Gill, a Member of 
  the Subcommittee on Oversight from the State of Texas, for the 
  record
    An article entitled, ``ICE agent struck by Renee Good's 
        vehicle suffered internal bleeding to torso, DHS says,'' 
        Jan. 14, 2026, Fox News
    A press release rntitled, ``DHS Reaches More than 4,000 
        Arrests of Illegal Aliens Including Murderers, Sex 
        Offenders, Gang Members, and Terrorists in Minnesota 
        Since Operation Metro Surge Began,'' Feb. 4, 2026, U.S. 
        Department of Homeland Security
    A press release entitled, ``UPDATE: DHS Deploys Special 
        Operations After Multiple Violent Attacks on Federal Law 
        Enforcement by Domestic Terrorists in Chicago,'' Oct. 4, 
        2025, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

 
THE HUMAN TOLL OF SANCTUARY POLICIES: STORIES FROM VICTIMS AND FAMILIES

                              ----------                              


                        Thursday, April 16, 2026

                        House of Representatives

                       Subcommittee on Oversight

                       Committee on the Judiciary

                             Washington, DC

    The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 2 p.m., in Room 
2141, Rayburn House Office Building, the Hon. Jefferson Van 
Drew [Chair of the Subcommittee] presiding.
    Members present: Representatives Van Drew, Jordan, Onder, 
Schmidt, Gill, Crockett, Raskin, and Johnson.
    Mr. Van Drew. Thank you all for being here today. This is a 
regular meeting of the Subcommittee on Oversight. The women 
sitting in front of us today, you shouldn't have to be here. 
You shouldn't have to have a hearing on this topic. What you 
should have, and we can't do, is to have your children back. 
The systems of governing across this country have failed you, 
so you are here and, damn it, we are going to listen to you.
    Folks have said on the other side sometimes a lot of things 
in defense of sanctuary city policies. I say tell that to Laura 
Wilkerson, whose 18-year-old son Joshua was murdered by an 
illegal alien from Belize. He was beaten with a wooden rod. His 
hands and feet were bound. His body was set on fire and I'm 
sorry I even have to say this, and he was left in a field. 
Joshua gave his killer a ride home from school that day. That 
was Joshua's crime. That is the kind of kid that he was.
    Tell it to Patricia Fox, whose daughter, Carissa, was 
riding on the back of a motorcycle when an illegal alien with 
no license and no insurance cut across three lanes of traffic 
and hit her, and then he fled the scene and left her for dead.
    Tell that to Jen Heiling, whose son, Brady, 19 years old, a 
football and track athlete, who would turn down college 
scholarships just to stay close to his family and his 
girlfriend, was killed, was murdered when a drunk illegal alien 
drove the wrong way on an interstate at a blood alcohol level 
just about three times the legal limit.
    Go ahead, tell them sanctuary policies make communities 
safer. Look them in the eye and say that. Tell them that 
blindly letting in millions of unknown people into this country 
makes us safer. It doesn't. We know it. It doesn't. I know all 
of you know it; yet here we are. This is a direct, documented, 
undeniable line between the policy choices that have directly 
led to the deaths of innocent Americans.
    In New York, failure to honor ICE detainers resulted in the 
release of 6,947 criminal illegal aliens, criminal illegal 
aliens, almost 7,000, with crimes ranging from 29 homicides, 
2,500 assaults, 200 burglaries, 300 robberies, 400 dangerous 
drug offenses, 300 weapons offenses, and 200 sexual predatory 
offenses. In Illinois, they had the man who shot and killed 
Sheridan Gorman, an 18-year-old freshman, walk in a park with 
her friends in custody, but they let him go. We know because 
this Committee obtained the Border Patrol documents, when Jose 
Medina crossed into this country, he made no asylum claim, and 
agents determined he was unlikely to run away, and look what he 
did. The Biden Administration released him anyway, into our 
communities, onto our streets, and into the park where Sheridan 
Gorman was walking with her friends.
    These same sanctuary policies protected the man who killed 
Katie Abraham, an Ohio University student, who was sitting at a 
car, stopped at a red light, when a drunk illegal alien who had 
already been deported once before slammed into her at 78 miles 
an hour and left the scene. He was driving on a fake identity 
with fake documents under a fake name. He had gone to three 
different bars that night.
    Sanctuary policies protected the man who killed Richard 
Williams he is a senior, too an 83-year-old veteran, an Air 
Force veteran, who was standing on a subway platform, not 
bothering anybody, who served his country, when Mr. Hernandez, 
a Honduran national who had been deported from this country 
four times with 15 prior criminal charges--15, how many times 
does it take for us to learn? He came up behind him, and he 
shoved them on the tracks.
    They call these policies sanctuary to make them sound nice. 
Well, I will let you know what I call it. I call it negligence. 
I call it a dereliction of our duty to protect the American 
people that we serve. When your policies repeatedly release 
dangerous criminals who go on to kill innocent Americans over 
and over again, and you do it knowingly, and I don't mean to be 
harsh but the only thing, the only word I can think of is 
murder.
    An ICE detainer doesn't ask for much: Hold a person who has 
committed a crime for 48 hours so Federal agents can take them 
into custody. Two days. That's all they asked. These Governors 
and these mayors and these officials were all sitting in our 
comfortable offices and our ivory towers, continuing to ignore 
the duty and ignore the safety of their constituents. It 
continues to lead to one tragedy after another.
    We have had too many different types of hearings on this, 
and yet it continues. That is why I applaud all of you when we 
talked in the back, that you have the guts, that you have the 
strength, that you have the love in your heart for those that 
you lost, and the love in your heart to try to help other 
Americans, and to try to change the system.
    You asked me back there do the good guys win? Not all the 
time; but damn it, it is worth the effort and you have got to 
try to win. This is worth the effort that you all are making. I 
mean it. I thank you.
    That's why I called this hearing. Not for shrewd arguments, 
not for talking points, not for technicalities, and not for all 
the legal words and the legalese. It is just a hearing for 
people. I wanted to hear from real people. I didn't want to 
hear from, and we put plenty of attorneys up there, too; I'm 
not being critical, Mr. Romanucci, but I wanted to hear from 
the American people who have been hurt and want to make a 
difference. I called this hearing. I called it for Joshua. I 
called this hearing for Carissa. I called this hearing for 
Brady. I called this hearing for Hallie, Sheridan and Katie, 
and Richard and Stephanie. Do you want me to read all the 
names? I don't think you do because it hurts.
    These are real people and they are real tragedies, real 
pain and real hurt. You know what? Condolences don't do it. 
Feeling sorry doesn't do it. The words don't do it. Speeches 
like the speech I am giving now, it can't suffice. It can't do 
it. I don't want anybody to sit here. I have heard people say, 
and I say this as a father and now the grandfather of two 
little ones, don't say you know how you feel because we don't 
know how you feel. We will never, pray to God, know how you 
feel. Nobody can unless you go through it. Nobody knows how you 
feel.
    I am going to ask all of us today that sits up here on this 
dais, and more will be coming in, to look you all in the eyes, 
to look at you directly, and to listen to you. I want all of us 
to hear for ourselves about the failure of sanctuary policies. 
I thank you.
    Now I'm going to recognize the Ranking Member, Ms. 
Crockett, for an opening statement.
    Ms. Crockett. Thank you so much, Mr. Chair. Let me echo the 
condolences that he said not to give. Regardless, as someone 
who I don't think will ever get comfortable with trying to 
explain the unexplainable, specifically to parents, there is a 
due order that we all believe will exist, especially when you 
bring your beautiful child into this world. The one thing that 
no parent ever anticipates is for that order to be disrupted.
    Prior to coming to Congress, I was frustrated. I did a lot 
of the same work that Mr. Romanucci does. I had to face so many 
parents that lost their children and shouldn't have, whether it 
was doing the civil rights work or whether it was sometimes 
being the criminal defense attorney that would have to walk 
into court and represent people and make sure that their due 
process rights were preserved because they had been accused of 
killing somebody else.
    I will say that I agree with the Chair when he says that 
speeches cannot suffice. They never have; they never will. I 
must say that our actions have to speak louder than any words, 
and one of the reasons that I got into politics is because I 
felt like politicians are very good at lip service. Frankly, 
this hearing is a hearing that we have had over and over and 
over, where we have talked about sanctuary cities. It 
frustrates me, if I am being perfectly honest, because it 
doesn't lead to solutions. It feels like political 
gamesmanship, and the Chair is my friend, but I always keep it 
as real as I can.
    I want to say thank you to each and every one of you for 
being here today. Let me be clear about something.
    Anyone who commits a crime, especially a violent crime, 
should be fully held accountable. No matter their citizenship 
status, race, sex, how much money they do or don't have, 
whether they went to school or not, or even if they are a 
government official, no one should be above the law.
    I have listened to similar witnesses give their accounts 
and their stories. Specifically, as it relates to the witnesses 
that sit before us today, I have read your written testimony 
and I agree with some of the specific things that have been 
said in your written testimony, for example, Ms. Fox, that 
policies have consequences and that public policy should not 
require a threshold of victims before it is taken seriously. 
The only people in disagreement with this statement are the 
Republicans on this Committee. They have held multiple hearings 
on this topic but still haven't invited the families of anyone 
killed by ICE or who have died while in ICE's custody. More 
people died in ICE's custody last year than any time in the 
21st century, and Republicans still haven't invited any of 
their families to testify before this Committee. ICE and CBP 
have either shot or shot at least 24 people, including American 
citizens. Some have died. Others have been severely injured. A 
college student even had to have their eye removed after being 
shot in the face. Republicans have not invited any of their 
families to testify before this Committee. As far as I know, 
Republicans have not even contacted the families of those 
killed or harmed.
    What our witnesses went through is tragic and devastating, 
and their loved ones, you deserve justice. I have to be clear 
and say that their lives are not worth more, nor less, than, 
say, the life of Renee Good or the life of Alex Pretti or the 
life of Ruben Martinez, a 23-year-old U.S. citizen who was shot 
and killed by ICE in March 2025, or the life of Marimar 
Martinez, a 30-year-old U.S. citizen who was shot five times by 
Federal agents. Now, Ms. Martinez miraculously survived; but, 
to Ms. Fox's point, it, quote, ``should not require a threshold 
of victims before it is taken seriously.''
    Just six months after Federal agents murdered Ruben 
Martinez, they tried to murder Marimar Martinez but failed. 
Just 2\1/2\ months later, Federal agents killed Renee Good. 
Just 17 days after that, Federal agents killed Alex Pretti. 
Each time, Republicans on this Committee have blamed the 
victims. If they had only been exercising their First Amendment 
rights, they would be alive today, or if Ms. Martinez hadn't 
panicked after Federal agents ran up behind her, put an AR-15 
to her head, and said, quote, ``do something, bitch,'' if she 
had just stayed calm, maybe she wouldn't have been shot five 
times. This is what failed policy looks like, and these 
families deserve to have a voice when they are discussing 
immigration enforcement policies in the United States.
    Republicans would rather parade families experiencing 
tragedy around the halls of Congress for political purposes 
than to actually fix our broken immigration system. In fact, I 
don't know how many people remember, but, prior to the 
Presidential election, the House and the Senate had worked on 
legislation, and there was a candidate that did not want us to 
take up the legislation because they wanted to campaign on a 
broken system. The bad part about campaigning on broken systems 
is that they continue to allow for harm to be permeated 
throughout the entirety of our country, and that is exactly 
what happened and that is what is happening right now.
    In fact, Republicans are ignoring all crime across the 
United States. They refuse to enforce congressional subpoenas 
to advance the investigation into the Epstein pedophile ring. 
They have been completely silent on the fact that Donald Trump 
issued unconditional pardons for January 6th insurrectionists, 
many of whom were convicted on separate charges of rape, 
stalking, child abuse, domestic violence, drug trafficking, and 
possession of child porn. For months, they have ignored Trump's 
and Hegseth's war crimes when they ordered the killings of 
noncombatant civilians, many of whom were just fishermen; and 
now they're ignoring the President's illegal war and genocidal 
threats against the Iranian people.
    Republicans have completely abandoned the American people. 
The ATF case referrals are down. The DEA case referrals are 
down. The number of weapons seized by DHS dropped by almost 80 
percent. Drug arrests are down. In just the first six months of 
his administration, Trump's DOJ ended 23,000 criminal cases, 
including investigations into terrorism, tax evasion, drug 
trafficking, and other violent crimes. The Republicans on this 
Committee haven't held a single hearing, started any 
investigations, or done anything about it. Drug traffickers, 
men who prey on children, murderers, and potential terrorists 
are all roaming the streets of America because they would 
rather use these families' tragedy for political gain.
    I am going to be real honest about this. Your children 
should be here today. Believe me when I tell you that. While I 
sit in this imperfect government, and we all know that 
government is run by imperfect people because we are all human, 
there are policies that can be changed. It would be my hope and 
prayer that we start to bring about policy changes that can 
prevent loss of life all around.
    Right now, as federally elected officials, the one thing 
that we could do to start to save at least some folk is to 
focus on the fact that we have what seems to be government-
sanctioned violence that is leading to people dying. We are the 
ones that oversee these government officials, and I would 
encourage the Chair to hold a hearing so that we can do that 
part because we are not elected to run any city. We are elected 
on the Federal level, and we are the ones that are supposed to 
have oversight over DHS and others.
    With that, I will yield.
    Mr. Van Drew. I thank the Ranking Member. When I make a 
mistake, I make a mistake. It is important to me to start each 
meeting, and I forgot to do it, with the pledge, so we're going 
to stand up and do the pledge and then a moment of silence, 
just thinking about all that is transpiring. Please stand.
    All. I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States 
of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one 
Nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for 
all.
    Mr. Van Drew. Remain silent for a moment of silence.
    (Moment of silence observed.)
    Mr. Van Drew. I am now going to recognize the Chair of the 
Committee of the whole, Mr. Jordan.
    Mr. Jordan. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you for that moment 
of silence. Thank you for doing this hearing. I thank our 
witnesses, particularly Ms. Heiling, Ms. Fox, and Ms. 
Wilkinson, for being here and for your loss.
    I just said this on the House floor, but it is worth saying 
again. Think about what has happened in our country. First, for 
four years, the Democrats allowed 10 million illegal migrants 
to enter our Nation. Second, they set up sanctuary 
jurisdictions all over the country to make it more difficult to 
remove illegal migrants who commit crime. Third, they don't 
want to fund the people who actually remove those illegal 
migrants who commit crime. They don't want to fund ICE. That is 
their plan, and they are executing it. Of course, what is the 
end result? Tragedies like all your families have had to 
endure. That is what happens. That is what happens when you 
adopt the plan that they are putting in action. That is exactly 
what happens.
    This is not political, as the Ranking Member just said. 
This is the facts. You have lived it in the worst way possible, 
the worst way, the most personal to your entire family. What 
has happened is tragic, and you know that, but you're willing 
to come here and testify because you want that plan to be 
stopped. Let in 10 million, create sanctuary jurisdictions 
where illegal migrants commit crimes, almost a third of the 
country is in that kind of jurisdiction: 18 cities, 11 States, 
three counties, and the District of Columbia, that kind of 
jurisdiction. Then, oh, the guys who go out and stop those bad 
guys, illegal migrants who did crime, they defunded them. Wow. 
That is the Democrats' plan? That is scary.
    This is not political. This is for you to come tell your 
story, so, hopefully, we can stop what they've started to the 
tune of 10 million. Oh, by the way, it just got worse, it just 
got worse because on the House floor they said anyone who came 
here under temporary protected status is now going to be 
permanent. Three-hundred thousand Haitians who entered the 
country during the Biden Administration, we are going to make 
that permanent. They're making it even worse.
    This is not a political hearing. This is to get the facts 
and the truth about the tragedy you have had to endure because 
of Democrat policies, plain and simple. I want to thank the 
Chair for his work, for this hearing, and for your courage and 
your willingness to come here today and tell the story.
    With that, I yield back.
    Mr. Van Drew. I thank the Chair. I recognize the Ranking 
Member from the State of Maryland.
    Mr. Raskin. Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I want to thank 
the family members who came to Washington today to tell us the 
stories of how they lost their children. Please forgive my 
black and bloody eye. I am nursing a medical injury, but I did 
not want to miss this important hearing. If the light gets too 
intense, forgive me if I put the sunglasses back on.
    There is no pain, Mr. Chair, no anguish, no trauma, and no 
catastrophe worse for any parent than having to bury your 
child. My heart and my sympathy go to all of you who lost a 
child, as I did, and to your children who lost a brother or a 
sister. Nothing hurts more than losing a child, a family 
member, in the prime of their life or having them suffer a 
catastrophic injury or assault because someone else decided 
that their life didn't matter. You are all here today, bravely, 
to tell us how much the lives of your children did matter and 
do matter and to ensure that their legacies here on Earth, 
while senselessly cut short or dramatically altered, still live 
on in your work and in your families.
    In telling your loved ones' stories, you are advancing the 
righteous goal of ensuring that no other person suffers the 
pain of what you have gone through. You will not find a single 
member in this body who disagrees with your goal or your 
mission. This is a House, this is a Congress, filled on both 
sides with mothers and fathers, uncles and aunts, grandparents, 
brothers and sisters, and sons and daughters. We all want to 
protect our families and to keep them safe from harm.
    The terrible crimes that your families have suffered must 
be universally condemned. Victims of violent crimes, all 
violent crimes, victims of vehicular homicides, victims of 
reckless driving, all of them must be listened to, must be 
heard, and must be respected. Victims must receive justice for 
the dreadful crimes that took their loved ones away. 
Perpetrators must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of our 
laws. Those who attack police officers or those who attack 
civilians must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of our laws. 
No one should be granted a blanket pardon without proof of 
remorse, rehabilitation, or restitution to their victims. Once 
perpetrators have served their sentence here, if they are in 
our country illegally, they should be removed from our country.
    This is not a partisan problem, and nobody should try to 
turn it into a partisan problem. Tragically, the stories that 
we hear today can be told of any President. President Bush, 
President Obama, President Trump, and President Biden, each of 
their administrations released undocumented immigrants who went 
on to commit violent crimes. We could fill the room with people 
speaking of their lost family members at the hands of people 
who came into the country illegally under Democratic and 
Republican Administrations alike.
    It is not a partisan problem. Everyone knows our 
immigration system has been broken for decades. Administration 
after administration, we have lacked the political will to do 
the hard work of putting together a bipartisan solution. We 
need an immigration system that makes it a lot harder to come 
here illegally or impossible to come here illegally and a lot 
easier to come here legally to participate in the American 
dream. We need an immigration system that gives dreamers and 
others who have built a productive and law-abiding life in our 
country a pathway to legal status.
    Alas, this administration is focused on mass arrests, mass 
detention, and mass deportation that are dividing our country 
in unprecedented ways. To achieve this goal, the DHS is not 
focused on going after the worst of the worst. The category of 
violent criminals quickly exhausted, with Stephen Miller 
demanding 3,000 draconian immigration arrests every single day, 
Federal agents simply started indiscriminately rounding up 
immigrants and American citizens who looked like immigrants, 
according to the agents. ICE has arrested kindergartners, 
daycare teachers, and parents dropping off their kids at 
school. They dragged U.S. citizen grandparents out of their 
homes in their underwear in subzero temperatures and ripped 
children from their beds in the middle of the night, using them 
as bait to arrest their parents.
    When ICE does manage to arrest people with criminal records 
or charges, those are often people who are currently in 
custody. In many cases, ICE is effectively giving criminals get 
out of jail free cards by deporting them in the middle of their 
criminal sentences or, even worse, deporting them before their 
trials can even begin, depriving their victims of justice. All 
so the agency can simply jack up the President's deportation 
numbers. This makes it vital to hear from families like yours 
who have suffered from terrible crimes to hear about the 
importance of accountability for those crimes.
    Your testimony is an important and powerful reminder that 
the fundamental responsibility of our Federal law enforcement 
and justice system is to keep the people safe and to ensure 
that no one is ever above the law and no one is ever beneath 
it. The government must stand on the side of victims of crimes, 
not their perpetrators. I tried to remind Attorney General 
Bondi of that principle when she appeared here before our 
Committee. That is why we have been so focused on insisting 
that we hear from the victims of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine 
Maxwell and their elite pedophile network, the women survivors 
who our government has failed at every turn. We failed to 
protect them from the appalling human trafficking and rape ring 
in the first place. Then, our government failed them again by 
not holding any of Epstein's powerful friends accountable, 
exposing victims' names while censoring the names of 
perpetrators and playing outrageous political games with the 
files and DOJ's possession that they are legally compelled to 
turn over to Congress and make public.
    I was happy to hear that the First Lady of the United 
States agrees with that. We hope that our Committee will heed 
her call to hold hearings, as Ms. Trump said, ``with the 
survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's billion-dollar global sex 
trafficking ring.''
    This is also why we speak up for all the people victimized 
and harmed by the people who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 
2021. Not only the over 150 police officers who were 
bludgeoned, beaten, crushed, and even died because of what 
happened that day, but also for all those who have been harmed 
by the January 6th perpetrators after they got their pardons 
from President Trump. These pardon recipients have gone on to 
abuse women and children, plot murders, and commit sexual 
assault and kidnapping.
    After January 6th rioter Andrew Paul Johnson got his pardon 
from President Trump, he repeatedly sexually abused two 12-
year-old children and tried to keep them quiet by promising to 
share with them some of the millions of dollars in restitution 
that he plans to receive from the Trump Administration. If not 
for President Trump's pardon, these children never would have 
been molested. Their innocence would not have been shattered by 
this monster.
    It is essential to hear from people harmed also by the 
aggressive police State style immigration enforcement tactics 
that have terrified the country. They don't target the worst of 
the worst; they are the worst of the worst. This includes 
hearing from the families of the three American citizens ICE 
agents have gunned down point-blank in our streets, like Renee 
Good, the 36-year-old mother and poet who was shot three times 
in the head and body by an ICE officer while she was driving 
her car.
    This includes the American citizens who have been profiled, 
beaten, detained, and even deported by ICE. It includes the 
police officers who are finding it more difficult to do their 
jobs because immigrant communities no longer trust them and 
prosecutors whose cases are stymied because ICE deports their 
defendants, witnesses, and victims before their trials can even 
begin, and it includes the family members of people who have 
died at the hands of their abusers because they were too afraid 
to report them to the police for fear they would be deported.
    Failing to arrest and deport the worst of the worst makes 
all of us less safe, but so, too, does allowing Federal agents 
to trample the rights and freedoms of the American people.
    I want to thank you all again for appearing before us today 
and hope that we will continue to listen to the voices of 
everyone whose lives have been so immeasurably altered by the 
failure of our government to act and enact meaningful policy 
changes to keep all our streets and all our people safe. I look 
forward to hearing your testimony today, and I yield back, Mr. 
Chair.
    Mr. Van Drew. I thank the Ranking Member. Without 
objection, all other opening statements will be included in the 
record.
    We now will introduce today's witnesses.
    Ms. Patricia Fox. Ms. Fox lives in Denver metro area and is 
the full-time caregiver to her daughter, Carissa. Carissa was 
hit by an unlicensed and uninsured driver who entered the 
United States illegally. She sustained a traumatic brain injury 
and now requires full-time care.
    Jen Heiling. Ms. Heiling is the mother of Brady Heiling, a 
young man who, along with his girlfriend, were hit by an 
illegal alien. Brady died from his injuries five days later, 
while his girlfriend was killed instantly. The alien was a 
Honduran national and was intoxicated and driving the wrong way 
on the highway.
    Mr. Antonio Romanucci. Mr. Romanucci is the founding 
partner of Romanucci Blandin, a Chicago-based law firm. He 
represents the family of Renee Good.
    Ms. Laura Wilkerson. Ms. Wilkerson is the mother of Joshua 
Wilkerson, a young man who was beaten to death, set on fire by 
an illegal alien who was his high school classmate. Joshua was 
giving this individual a ride home from school when he attacked 
him.
    We are going to begin by swearing you all in. Would you 
please rise? Raise your right hand. Do you swear or affirm 
under penalty of perjury that the testimony you are about to 
give is true and correct to the best of your knowledge, 
information, and belief, so help you God.
    Thank you. You may sit down. Let the record reflect the 
witnesses have answered in the affirmative. Please know that 
your written testimony will be entered into the record in its 
entirety. We ask that you summarize your testimony to no longer 
than five minutes.
    Ms. Fox, you may begin.

                   STATEMENT OF PATRICIA FOX

    Ms. Fox. Thank you for reminding us where we were. I 
thought for a second that I wandered into an Epstein file 
hearing. ``Now, that I have been holding my arms open to what 
life has to offer me, I couldn't be happier.'' That was the 
last text from my daughter roughly two hours before an 
unlicensed, uninsured, illegal alien would run a stop sign, 
cross three lanes of traffic without looking, and collide with 
Carissa, slamming her head first into a concrete barrier. The 
driver then fled the scene with her boyfriend and aunt, not 
knowing if my daughter was alive or dead.
    My daughter was ambitious. She was enrolled in esthetician 
school. She quickly rose to the top of her class, landed jobs 
with high-end salons. She would smile with confidence as she 
talked about her dreams of opening a skincare line based on 
beauty secrets around the world. She was very specific that her 
goal was to make quality skincare affordable for everyone 
because everyone deserved to feel beautiful. I was so proud of 
the young woman that Carissa was blossoming into before my 
eyes. She would have done it, too, because when my daughter put 
her mind to something, she achieved it.
    Now, she's minimally conscious, nonverbal, is wheel chair 
bound, and eats through a feeding tube. She has very little 
cognitive control over her body. She communicates discomfort 
through grunts and moans and, at night, she often calls out to 
me. I think she is afraid of the dark, or being alone, or both. 
I don't know for sure because she can't tell me.
    I know the pulse ox that monitors her vitals while she is 
sleeping says her heart rate is high when I walk in. Then, I 
touch her arm and sing to her in those wee hours, and her heart 
rate goes back down and she goes to sleep. To think, we're the 
lucky ones. My little girl survived. I still get to kiss her. I 
still get to hold her hand. Many Angel Families don't get that.
    That blessing is not lost on me. For us, there is hope, 
regardless of what the doctors say, because my God is big and 
he happens to be in the business of miracles. Hope for the 
future does not erase today's reality. That reality is my 
daughter's care is now my full-time responsibility. Her medical 
needs are extensive. Her medical bills well into seven figures 
and growing. The person responsible for this has contributed 
nothing.
    I am not here out of anger, but out of responsibility, 
responsibility to my daughter and responsibility to ensure that 
what happened to Carissa is not simply dismissed as an 
unfortunate exception but recognized as an all-too-common 
pattern. This is not just about my family. Destructive 
sanctuary policies carry real-world consequences. Angel 
Families live with these consequences every day. Each Angel 
Family that comes before all of you is risking more pain and 
trauma. We receive death threats. We have lost friends. We have 
to relive our trauma over and over again, every time we tell 
our stories.
    Who is going to tell our stories if we don't? You will 
never hear Carissa's story from Colorado Democrats, like John 
Hickenlooper, Jason Crow, Brittany Petersen, or Joe Neguse. 
Here we are telling our stories until not one more American 
daughter, American son, or American family loses a loved one to 
these fully preventable tragedies.
    We are often told that illegal aliens commit crimes at 
lower rates than American citizens. They say studies show, but 
when you start digging into those studies they don't hold up 
under scrutiny. Let's talk about some statistics that we do 
know. Unlicensed drivers are estimated to have five times 
higher risk of being involved in a fatal crash. They are often 
involved in reckless behaviors, such as speeding and impaired 
driving, leading to higher rates of serious injury and 
fatalities. Colorado has one of the highest rates of uninsured 
drivers in the United States, with estimates between 17-20 
percent. Of all uninsured Colorado drivers, about 25 percent 
are estimated to be unlicensed illegal aliens. Do you think 
that a driver is magically protected from these statistics 
simply because they are undocumented?
    Here's another factual statistic: Entering the United 
States illegally is considered a criminal offense under Federal 
law. One-hundred percent of illegal aliens are criminals.
    We often hear that enforcement should only focus on the 
worst of the worst. My daughter was not harmed by someone that 
was labeled as the worst of the worst. She was harmed by 
someone who shouldn't have been in a position to hurt her in 
the first place.
    I reject the idea that families must wait for tragedy 
before action is taken. There should not have to be a Carissa, 
a Brady, a Hallie, or a Joshua. Public policy should not 
require a threshold of victims on either side. Our children are 
not your collateral damage. Thank you.
    [The prepared statement of Ms. Fox follows:]
    [GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] 
    
    Mr. Van Drew. Thank you, Ms. Fox. No words, no words. Ms. 
Heiling, you are next. Thank you.

                 STATEMENT OF JENNIFER HEILING

    Ms. Heiling. Thank you. My name is Jennifer Heiling. I am 
an Angel Mom, and I am from a small town in Minnesota. My son, 
Brady Heiling, and his girlfriend, Hallie Helgeson, were 
tragically killed while celebrating their three-year 
anniversary at a concert in Wisconsin. We got a text that they 
had made it to their car and were headed home. This would be 
the last thing that we had ever heard from them. On July 20, 
2025, our lives came to a screeching halt. Brady and Hallie 
were innocently driving home while an illegal immigrant that 
was driving the wrong way while intoxicated crashed into them. 
She was a multiple offender two times over her legal limit and 
had failed to install her interlock device that would have 
prevented this whole incident from happening. Above all else, 
she has never had a driver's license to be on the road in the 
first place.
    This woman was not a hardened criminal. She was just a mom 
that was allowed to live in this country completely exempt from 
consequences for breaking our laws. Time after time, she was 
allowed to keep living here above the law without any attempt 
to change her behavior and bad decisions. The ability to seek 
protection and be shielded by living in a sanctuary city will 
continue to allow illegal immigrants to continue to take the 
innocent lives of Americans.
    If you want to seek refuge in our country and make a better 
life for yourself, I am in total support but expect you to 
follow our laws. Our safety depends on it. Why are we allowing 
people to live among us that want to cause us harm? Why are we 
expected to allow them to keep offending and not be deported? 
Do you think this is really helping anyone seek a better life? 
It is not. This is called being an enabler. If you are unable 
to live by the laws of this country, you should be removed at 
the very first offense. Why are we waiting for our children to 
be murdered? If the woman responsible for murdering our 
children was deported after the first time she was drinking and 
driving, we wouldn't be forced to be living this nightmare.
    To allow someone to continue to be on the road with 
multiple traffic violations, a history of drinking and driving, 
not to mention never legally obtaining a driver's license or 
citizenship, is absolutely recklessness. This entire tragedy 
was completely preventable, and not just for us but for her 
too. If you think allowing anyone to live their lives here 
without consequence is helping them in any way become a better 
person, you are mistaken. This woman will have to live the rest 
of her life knowing she not only murdered two innocent 
teenagers full of hopes, dreams, just ready to start their 
lives together, but she also destroyed her life, our life, our 
community, and our community's lives. Generations of kids and 
classmates left to figure out why was this allowed to happen. 
It should have never happened.
    Try to explain to Brady's 11-year-old sister that he will 
never attend another one of her events to cheer her on. He will 
never get to see her grow up. Explain to his 16-year-old sister 
he won't get to be here to protect her from the guys with bad 
intentions or meeting her newest farm animal addition. Tell 
Hallie's brother that he is now an only child, all because an 
illegal immigrant that was allowed to live in a sanctuary city 
while breaking our laws repeatedly until she finally murdered 
someone with her reckless selfish ways. Please, I beg you to 
explain to me that I will not get to watch my son grow into the 
man I was so diligently raising him to be. I will not get to 
see him succeed at all his goals he has worked so hard to make 
come true. Then, you explain to Hallie's mom why she will never 
get to see her little girl become a mother herself, and you 
explain to her dad why he will never get to walk his little 
girl down the aisle and give her away.
    Please, I ask that you tell my husband that the company he 
spent his whole life building was for nothing. Brady will never 
get to work alongside of him just so that a group of people 
that feel it is more important to protect those illegal 
immigrants let them keep offending until they completely 
destroy the lives of innocent children and families is more 
important than our rights and safety of American citizens.
    It is really easy to say that we need to protect these 
groups when you are unaffected. It is really easy for people I 
don't even know to sit there and say my kids deserve better 
than to be part of a political agenda. If you believe this to 
be true, you are sadly mistaken. I don't want to be here. We 
don't want to be here, but we weren't given a choice. Our 
children were murdered. Here we are trying to prevent this 
nightmare from happening to anyone else.
    It is to protect the loved ones of the very people 
attacking us. Some of my own family find it necessary to tell 
me this is an issue of drinking and driving, not immigration. 
If this particular woman would have been responsibly dealt with 
and deported after the first time drinking and driving, then we 
would not be in this position right now. My entire future has 
been literally stolen from me in a way that will never make 
sense, and it still doesn't seem real.
    I should be listening to Brady and Hallie tell me about 
college and about how they can't wait to come home for the 
summer. Because we continue to protect people like this and 
give them free reign in our communities, the innocent lives 
will continue to be taken. Angel Families will continue to 
multiply. Whose kid has to die before these people will see 
where we are coming from? Whose family has to be destroyed 
before they are willing to admit, hey, we have a problem? What 
tragedy has to rip their lives apart before they realize that, 
when they tell me I need to look at my situation differently, 
it is selfish, heartless, and cruel? If my reasoning is wrong, 
then I pray that you will never know how it feels to live a day 
in my life.
    [The prepared statement of Ms. Heiling follows:]
    [GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] 
    
    Mr. Van Drew. Thank you, Ms. Heiling. Mr. Romanucci.

                 STATEMENT OF ANTONIO ROMANUCCI

    Mr. Romanucci. Chair Van Drew, Chair Jordan, Ranking Member 
Crockett, and Ranking Member Raskin, my name is Antonio 
Romanucci. I am a national civil rights attorney, and I have 
the deep honor of representing the family of Renee Good. It was 
her tragic death in Minnesota by Federal immigration agents in 
Minneapolis that I took on that representation. I also 
represent U.S. citizens whose constitutional rights were 
violated by Federal agents in Chicago.
    First, please let me express my deepest respect to my 
copanelists and mothers who have suffered unthinkable loss, 
tragedy, and trauma. Your families' tragedies are inexcusable, 
and we respect your courage. As someone who represents victims 
of violent crime, that too often the second tragedy is that 
victims struggle to get the justice that they deserve.
    We share your concern that America needs commonsense 
immigration reform. I have heard all you say the same thing. 
Marching thousands of masked agents into communities, rounding 
up Black and Brown people, including children, terrorizing 
them, while creating collateral damage of death and 
catastrophic harm to American citizens, that's not the answer. 
All Americans should feel safe in their own cities where 
citizens are free from unlawful harm from anyone, including 
agents of their own government. Harm of Americans, by 
Americans, in American cities is devastating to our Republic. 
Those who have committed these violations of rights must be 
held accountable, just as all people who commit violent acts 
must be held accountable.
    Allow me to give insight into an American mother of three, 
Renee Good, who was killed while she was squarely being 
protected by the First Amendment. Here are words that her 
brother spoke to fellow Members of Congress not long ago, 
quote:

        The deep distress our family feels because of Renee's loss in 
        such a violent and unnecessary way is complicated by feelings 
        of disbelief and desperation for change. Our family took some 
        consolation thinking that perhaps Renee's death would bring 
        change in our country. It has not. These encounters with 
        Federal agents are changing many lives, including ours, 
        forever. The most important thing we can do is help our country 
        understand what a beautiful American we have lost. A sister, a 
        daughter, a mother, a partner, and friend.

    The distress is also felt by Alex Pretti's family. It is 
felt by Marimar Martinez in Chicago, shot five times by a 
Federal agent while bringing a donation to church. It is felt 
by elected official Juan Munoz, violently detained and used as 
a prop for a DHS video. It is felt by children separated from 
their parents and shipped to detention centers in another 
State.
    Family after family in city after city, the harms by our 
own Federal Government in American cities are staggering: 
Needless injury and death by masked agents undermining trust in 
all law enforcement, violations of freedom of speech, Fourth 
Amendment freedom from unlawful search and seizure, false 
statements of absolute immunity for agents and false narratives 
about victims, and failure to properly investigate claims of 
police misconduct.
    What is not understood is that Renee Good's family cannot 
pursue justice against a Federal officer the same way as if a 
State or local officer had fired those gunshots. This anomaly 
must end. Federal officers should not receive a special pass on 
accountability, and there should be a bridge to justice for all 
victims.
    Current law requires that you ask for permission from this 
Federal Government to file a lawsuit against it and only allows 
for a trial by judge and not a jury in defiance of the 7th 
Amendment. Reasonable updates to Section 1983 of the Civil 
Rights Act or the Federal Tort Claims Act are needed to ensure 
access to justice and accountability for wrongdoers. I urge 
Congress to ensure all people have the right to a jury trial, 
including those hurt or killed by Federal officers.
    In conclusion, I deeply respect the mothers who spoke their 
truths today. Their pain and anger are something no parent 
should ever experience, and it is palpable in this room. The 
family of Renee Good and so many other families impacted by the 
acts of Federal agents have, likewise, suffered immeasurable 
pain and anger, and all victims are worthy of the right to seek 
accountability.
    We all want safety and peace. Criminal acts of all kinds 
must be addressed. Please create commonsense immigration 
policies. Pursue accountability for the harm done by ICE with 
the same level of commitment that you pursue accountability for 
all people who commit crimes in this country and demand full 
compliance to our United States Constitution. Thank you.
    [The prepared statement of Mr. Romanucci follows:]
    [GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] 
    
                  STATEMENT OF LAURA WILKERSON

    Ms. Wilkerson. Thank you for having me here today to tell 
you the story of my son, Joshua. My husband and I raised three 
children, and Josh was the baby of our family. He was 18 years 
old and a senior in high school. A classmate of his asked him 
for a ride home and, unbeknownst to him, that classmate wanted 
to murder Josh so that he could scrap his truck for some money.
    Instead of getting Josh home that day, we got an autopsy 
report that explained just exactly how Josh died. There were 
three manners of death: Abdomen trauma, head trauma, and 
strangulation. I guess I feel lucky that he was dead before he 
was set on fire.
    This creates a hole in a family like you can never imagine. 
It will never be repaired here. Our lives will be different. It 
is like a bomb was dropped in our family. Even if we could pick 
up the pieces, you can't put them back together, right?
    I am OK with where Josh is at today. What I am not OK with 
are the lies that I am hearing as I sit here sometimes.
    Josh deserved to live. His brother was defending this 
country in the Air Force. He got to come home for two weeks to 
bury his little brother and then go back to defending this 
country and put his grief on the shelf. Now, that he is out, he 
deals with things later and it affects our family in every 
single way.
    The lies I want to talk about today are what I am hearing 
from Ms. Crockett and Mr. Raskin about I think you said there's 
potential terrorists roaming the streets. Those are due to 
sanctuary city policies. You invited the criminal element to, 
hey, come to our city and we are going to give you a sanctuary. 
What are you giving them a sanctuary from? The law? Who else 
gets sanctuary from the law? Do I get it? You feel sympathy for 
me? I am never going to be the same. Can I go do what I want to 
do and get sanctuary from the law?
    I can't even understand how you can say you are inviting 
the criminal element to come to your city and what you are 
doing is putting them over the citizens, the ones that are 
supposed to be voting for you, although we know illegals vote 
in the elections. Failed policies are under Obama inviting, 
opening the U.S. border to any and everybody, allowing them 
without vetting them, and shipping them off to other parts of 
the country so that they can vote in that area, giving them 
driver's licenses, giving them social security cards, allowing 
them to be citizens without being citizens and vote for a 
certain party.
    The lies about what you are saying are just that--they're 
lies. They can protest and, as far as Ms. Good's family, walk 
down the street all day long with a protest sign, walk down it 
all day long. You can fix it by telling them you can't get in 
the middle of a law enforcement investigation. I don't care how 
bad you think the policy is wrong. Don't get in the middle of 
an investigation of law enforcement. That would be the first 
way not to die if you want a simple protest.
    Antifa is not peaceful protesting. Those are the lies. It 
is lie after lie after lie after lie. None of you care about 
these people. You don't care about my kid. You don't care about 
theirs. You don't care about Ms. Good. It just suits you. It is 
frustrating to hear the lies after lies after lies, and it is 
over and over and over.
    I had hoped at my testimony 10 years ago, I wouldn't have 
to meet new families like this. Boy, I was so naive. We are 
still talking about giving sanctuary to people that broke the 
law. What about the people that stood in line and did it the 
hard way? Wrote letters home to their home country and said, 
''look, we made it to America.'' They didn't know how to speak 
the language. They didn't have a car. They didn't have a lot of 
money. They did it the right way, and they were granted the 
American dream. Many of them accomplished that. What about 
those people you are letting in; in front of those people? How 
does that make sense in your eyes? How do you sleep at night 
saying you are gonna give sanctuary to people who broke into 
this country?
    I don't know how you sleep at night, but what I do know is 
you don't care about our kids. They are collateral damage in 
the things that you want to happen. That is all they are. They 
are collateral damage. You can tell me about the sympathy, and 
I believe your sympathy. You don't want anybody to die. I 
understand that. Think about if it is your kid. You got any 
grandkids? You got kids? Think about your baby, a baby in your 
family, and think about in an hour you may have to go home 
watch or listen to your wife tell you that your son didn't come 
home from school today because he was beaten and tortured and 
set on fire by somebody that didn't need to be in this country.
    His parents had overstayed a visa. His father was given a 
Social Security card and a driver's license so that he could 
work, and he overstayed that visa. Then, he brought his whole 
family here without a visa to come in illegally. That is what I 
am mad about. If you really cared about this, you would stand 
up and quit calling for sanctuary cities. It makes no sense.
    All you're doing is trying to put people that have come 
into the country illegally before American citizens, especially 
even about the Renee Good. I feel for their family. They have 
lost a family member through no fault of their own, but she 
chose to go there that day. She chose to aim her car at a 
policeman. If she chose those actions, that got her killed. ICE 
isn't just deciding who to pick up. They are going after 
criminals in this country, and, if you're in the middle of that 
and you get in the middle of it and you want to go out there 
and tell them they shouldn't be doing it and you are an 
illegal, pick you up, too. Sorry. That's just the way it has to 
be.
    President Trump and Tom Homan and the Border Patrol have 
stopped the leak of illegal immigration in this country. It is 
ICE's job to clean up the dang mess. It is going to be hard. 
There are going to be casualties. There are going to be unhappy 
people and families that are hurting. I say if you are not 
putting your kids six feet under the dirt and turning around 
and walking away from the cemetery, you will be all right.
    Stop the nonsense. Stop it. It is time to clean up the mess 
of what happened under the last few administrations. I really 
don't care if they are unhappy. I am so grateful they could go 
home and see their kid, or they can FaceTime their kid in 
another country or the kid here can FaceTime. Their parents put 
them in that situation. Their parents brought him over or 
brought them over there when they were young. I understand it 
is no fault of the kids, but their parents put him that 
situation. You have parents in other countries that come here 
illegally and then they call for some yahoo to transport their 
kid across the border to join them. They don't care if they get 
raped all along the way because that's what happens. We know 
it, I know it, and you know it.
    Mr. Van Drew. Ms. Wilkerson, I could listen to you all day, 
and I mean it. I could. Your time has expired. I have been very 
lenient. You are about 1\1/2\ minutes over.
    Ms. Wilkerson. Sorry.
    Mr. Van Drew. No, don't be sorry. I am sorry I have to say 
this, but if you could wrap it up. Your entire testimony, 
anything else you have to say, will be put in the permanent 
record.
    Ms. Wilkerson. Thank you. Thank you for listening to me. I 
just want you to know that the leak has been stopped. Continue 
to fight to clean up the mess. Stop the nonsense of sanctuary 
cities.
    [The prepared statement of Ms. Wilkerson follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] 

Mr. Van Drew. Thank you, Ms. Wilkerson. We are going to now 
proceed under the five-minute rule with questions for those on 
the panel, and we are going to start with Mr. Schmidt from the 
State of Kansas.
    Mr. Schmidt. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I want to thank all our 
witnesses for being here and for not just taking your time but 
for giving your hearts. We are grateful for sharing your 
stories because it makes it real for people who are watching 
and who will read this record and who understand that this is 
more than a policy debate. Thank you for your time.
    Let me start with this direction. Ms. Wilkerson, let me 
start with you. I am sorry, I didn't catch, where is your home 
State?
    Ms. Wilkerson. It was Houston, Texas.
    Mr. Schmidt. In Texas.
    Ms. Wilkerson. I live just outside of Houston, yes.
    Mr. Schmidt. What happened to the person who killed your 
child?
    Ms. Wilkerson. I got justice in a court of law, probably 
because it was in Texas. He could have gotten between 5-99 
years. He received 99 years, and that means he has to serve 30 
years before he comes up for parole. We have about another 15 
years before I have to start fighting not to let him out--him 
getting out of jail.
    I am grateful that he got some justice. I know so many 
parents don't get that.
    Mr. Schmidt. Ms. Heiling, may I ask you the same question? 
What happened to the person who killed your child?
    Ms. Heiling. Brady and Hallie had their crash happen this 
past July. We have been pushed off and pushed off. Things take 
time, we're told. This is just how it works. Be patient. Try to 
raise your family, try to go about your life, but be patient. 
We are still living this justice you speak of.
    Mr. Schmidt. How old was Brady?
    Ms. Heiling. He was 19, and Hallie was 18.
    Mr. Schmidt. Brady looked like quite an athlete from the 
photos.
    Ms. Heiling. Brady and Hallie were both amazing athletes. 
Brady turned down scholarships to stay home and support Hallie 
in her athletics. They were going to start college together in 
about two weeks. All their college belongings are still in 
their rooms in our basements, just like they're going to come 
back and we're going to send them off someday.
    You are right. He looked like an amazing athlete because he 
was. He is a very special boy to a lot of people that know him 
and that don't know him. He has made a huge impact.
    Mr. Schmidt. I saw what looked like football photos. Was he 
a multisport athlete?
    Ms. Heiling. Brady played football mainly. He was a State 
track athlete. He ran relays and threw the shot put. He went 
two years in a row to the State competition, and he weight 
trained in between times. As you can see by the size of his 
biceps, he never missed a workout session. He was very self-
disciplined. He was very much a rule follower. To die in the 
way he did, innocently, trying to get home, the rule follower 
in him was screaming at the top of his lungs this woman is 
drunk, she's driving the wrong way, I don't have time to react. 
Why wasn't she home with her own family taking care of them, 
sparing my child?
    Mr. Schmidt. Where were they going to go to college?
    Ms. Heiling. They were going to go over to South Dakota to 
Lake Area Tech. He was planning on opening a diesel mechanic 
shop at our house. We just finished building. Him and his dad 
had spent the whole summer. They own semis and excavating 
equipment. They do a lot of dirt work and truck hauling, and he 
was going to open that shop to be able to service all those 
trucks.
    Like I said, he was very independently driven, had lots of 
goals. He had a plan for him and Hallie. It was a little 
different than what he was anticipating.
    Mr. Schmidt. Thank you, ma'am.
    Ms. Heiling. You are welcome.
    Mr. Schmidt. Ms. Fox, what happened to the person who hit 
your daughter?
    Ms. Fox. I contacted the VOICE, Victims of Immigration 
Crime Engagement, back in January. After our seventh 
arraignment, she took the plea, pleading guilty to Class 5 
felony, conspiracy to flee the scene of an accident with severe 
bodily injury. I filed a report with VOICE, and we received 
news that she has since been deported. February 28th, it was 
confirmed that she is back in Venezuela.
    Mr. Schmidt. Each of the three of you had interaction with 
the criminal justice system after the crimes that injured or 
killed your children. Since this all happened, to each of the 
three mothers just quickly, has anybody who engaged in the 
policies that let those people stay in this country illegally 
beforehand, has anybody contacted you and expressed sympathy or 
apologized to you?
    Ms. Heiling. No. We have heard from one politician from our 
local area expressing his sincere condolences, but we have 
heard nothing about anything that was done wrong in justice, as 
much as Ms. Renee Good has received.
    Ms. Wilkerson. I had several Republicans express their 
sympathy, but most of the others just wanted to look away and 
they are not emotionally strong enough to look at it, let alone 
live through it, but they are not going to change a policy. 
That is why I fully believe that our kids are just collateral 
damage.
    Mr. Schmidt. Thank you. My time is expired, Mr. Chair. I 
just want to say we are very sorry that our country let this 
happen to you.
    Mr. Van Drew. Thank you, Mr. Schmidt. I recognize the 
gentleman from Georgia, Mr. Hank Johnson.
    Mr. Johnson. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am so sorry for what 
has happened to your children. I cannot imagine what you have 
gone through, and no parent should have to go through what you 
have gone through. All victims of violent crime deserve 
justice, but this hearing is not about justice.
    It is entitled, ``The Human Toll of Sanctuary Policies: 
Stories From Victims and Families.'' We could very well have 
done a hearing on the human toll of the Trump-MAGA tax cuts on 
17 million Americans who got their healthcare access and food 
security ripped out from under them so that the wealthiest 
billionaires in this country could get another tax cut, or we 
could have entitled this hearing or had a hearing on the human 
toll of Trump's stupid war with Iran and how it is making life 
increasingly unaffordable for people here in America except for 
the wealthiest Americans--they can pay whatever the price is. 
We could have had a hearing on the human toll of Trump's 
desperate cover-up of the Epstein files, the toll that has 
played on the victims of that international child sex-abuse 
ring. No, we are here today, and not to cast any aspersions on 
any of you for testifying, but this is a Steve Miller-approved 
hearing whose sole aim is to stir up passion and bias and 
prejudice against immigrants who are people of color.
    Now, we have had mass murder after mass murder in this 
country perpetrated by all kinds of people, but I just want to 
talk about those that have been perpetrated by White males. 
Robert Card opened fire at a bowling alley in Lewiston, Maine, 
killing 18 people and wounding 13. Payton Gendron, a White 
supremacist, killed 10 people in a racist attack at a 
supermarket in Buffalo, New York. Randy Stair, a 32-year-old, 
suspected of killing a family of four in Romeoville, Illinois. 
Richard Dale Crum, a 52-year-old man in Arkabutla, Mississippi, 
who shot and killed six people, including his ex-wife and 
stepfather. The 38-year-old Courtney Gordon who stabbed four 
relatives, including two children, to death in New York City. I 
could go on and on in terms of tragedies and victims of tragedy 
who could be brought here to talk about this MAGA Republican 
failure to do anything about gun control.
    Even the fact that, Mr. Romanucci, you are seated No. 3 
instead of No. 4, normally the three Republican witnesses would 
be seated together, not sandwiching the Democratic witness, in 
between you. You got sandwiched today for the dramatic effect 
of it. It is all politics, and it is unfortunate what my 
friends here on the other side of the aisle are perpetrating.
    Mr. Romanucci, the killing of Ms. Good was by rogue ICE 
officers, Federal agents, who can't even be sued for the damage 
that they have done to your client's loved ones. That is wrong. 
That is why I've introduced the Bivens Act, which would allow 
people to bring Federal officials into court and sue them 
against these egregious actions. There are many. Certainly, 
they equate. I am not minimizing the tragedy that is before us 
today with you three women, but these other tragedies at the 
hands of nonimmigrants is just as important.
    My Bivens Act would ensure that all victims and their loved 
ones can get justice, even if the perpetrator is a government 
official. That is why I've also introduced the Constitutional 
Accountability Act, which would establish that Federal, State, 
and local governments have the same respondent superior 
liability that private employers have for their employees.
    There is much we can do to bring justice to those who have 
been aggrieved by tragedy. This MAGA Republican Congress is 
incapable and unwilling to do anything in that regard, and that 
is unfortunate.
    I am going to be the one who yields back after going only 
11 minutes over. Thank you, and I yield back.
    Mr. Van Drew. Thank you, Mr. Johnson. Yes, that was 11 
seconds over. In 11 minutes, I would have been tapping the 
gavel. With that, Mr. Schmidt.
    Mr. Schmidt. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have some unanimous 
consent requests.
    Mr. Van Drew. Without objection.
    Mr. Schmidt. I would ask unanimous consent to include in 
the record an article titled, ``ICE Asks Governor Pritzker and 
Chicago Sanctuary Politicians to Not Release Criminal Illegal 
Alien Accused of Killing 18-year-old Loyola College Student.''
    Also, an article titled, ``Mayor Frey's Sanctuary Policies 
Release Criminal Illegal Aliens from Jails Back into 
Minneapolis Streets to Terrorize More Innocent Americans.''
    Also, unanimous consent to include in the record an article 
titled, ``Illinois Father Says Pritzker Shows `Indifference' to 
His Daughter Being Killed by Illegal Immigrant.''
    Mr. Van Drew. Without objection.
    Mr. Schmidt. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
    Ms. Crockett. Mr. Chair, I have a UC.
    Mr. Van Drew. Without objection.
    Ms. Crockett. This is from the Texas Tribune. It is from 
March 29th, actually my birthday, 2010. ``Houston, no 
sanctuary, Annise Parker, Says,'' who was the mayor at the 
time.
    Ms. Wilkerson. Can I respond to that?
    Mr. Van Drew. Thank you. You know what? Mr. Gill is going 
to speak next, and he is going to yield some of his time to 
you. Is that OK?
    Ms. Wilkerson. Yes, sir.
    Mr. Van Drew. With that, I recognize Mr. Gill.
    Mr. Gill. Thank you, Mr. Chair, for holding this hearing. 
Thank you to the witnesses for coming here and telling us your 
stories and your families' stories. Before we get into that, it 
is worth saying that was one of the most disgusting testimoneys 
I have ever heard. To have Hank come in here and lecture Angel 
Families about how they shouldn't be here, how we shouldn't be 
holding this hearing. What the hell is wrong with you guys? The 
reason they are here is because of open borders that you guys 
perpetrated for four years. To come in here and to turn this 
into a MAGA Republican idiotic low IQ lecture is sickening. To 
whine about which seats they are in, it is disgusting.
    That said, I'd like to give you guys a chance to respond to 
some of the things that you have heard. I will start with you, 
Ms. Wilkerson.
    Ms. Wilkerson. Thank you. I just wanted to say that it was 
a spoken policy of Houston to be a sanctuary. It wasn't written 
at that point. The suburbs around Houston followed that same 
policy. Annise Parker is kind of laughable to me.
    This hearing could also be about why we are not or people 
aren't voting. There is a slush fund for people up here in 
these places that have committed crimes or people have said, 
oh, you've raped and stuff. This hearing could have been about 
that, too, but it is not. It is about our kids that we lost and 
about the very fact that sanctuary city policies is creating a 
haven for people that came to this country illegally. Thank 
you.
    Ms. Heiling. You can put me in whatever order, in whatever 
seat. My tragedy is never going to be OK. I will be last. I 
will be first. I will be 42nd seat, if that is what you want. 
We are so used to hearing everyone tell us, but we are sorry, 
please hear our condolences, but this hearing should be about 
this, this hearing should be about me. It is not. Today is our 
day. Hear us. Leave your buts in your seat. I don't wanna hear 
your buts. Our tragedies are disgusting.
    I still wait for my children to come home. It is not real 
to me. My 11-year-old, my 16-year-old, they are waiting for 
their car to come home with Brady and Hallie in it because 
guess what? It is evidence. We can't have that back yet. My 
garage door is empty. The girls say, mom, we still think they 
are gonna come home and tell us all about the concert and 
celebrating their anniversary because the car is not here. They 
will come home, won't they?
    We can't pick a headstone because that makes it too real, 
but you can sit here and tell us about what kind of hearing 
this should be. Renee Good is not the same as Angel Families. 
She made a choice. She left her home that day, made the choice. 
Brady and Hallie didn't get a choice. Carissa didn't get a 
choice. Joshua didn't get a choice. They are living American 
laws, the American dream. They were trying to make this place 
better, and they were stolen by somebody who doesn't care. Give 
me all your buts, I am used to it.
    Ms. Fox. I don't know if anybody has noticed, but I am not 
White. I wake up Brown every day. I am not sure what race has 
to do with any of this. Four. There are four kids that we 
talked about today, and you all can't seem to stay on topic for 
what, an hour of your time. You got to bring up what about, 
what about, what about.
    No. We are talking about these four kids. We are talking 
about Angel Families. Stay on topic. I don't want to talk about 
Epstein right now. That is another hearing. I don't want to 
talk about ICE detainees. That is another hearing. Right now, 
today, we are talking about sanctuary policies and how they 
have wrecked our families.
    You all come and you all feed Carissa. You get her up from 
her bed using a crane, and then you tell me and lecture me what 
this hearing should be about.
    Mr. Gill. Ms. Wilkerson, we have a little bit more time. 
Would you like to have the floor to respond to anything else 
you've heard today?
    Ms. Wilkerson. I just have to agree with them both. This 
hearing could be about anything, and I appreciate that they 
want to get some things on record, but it is not what it is 
about today. It is about American citizens whose parents try to 
do the right thing.
    I stayed at-home mom because I wanted to give Josh my 
values, my kids my values and teach them right from wrong and 
take them to church. You get almost through to that point, and 
then somebody that shouldn't even have been here just steals 
their life right out from under you. You will never understand 
the pain. I pray that you don't understand the pain.
    It is about giving a group of people sanctuary from the 
law. Nobody gets sanctuary from the law. It is absolutely 
ridiculous. It is hard to believe we are sitting here begging 
you to obey the laws that you all made. There are laws in the 
books. If we just start with that, we would be better off if we 
just start enforcing those. Nobody gets sanctuary from the law. 
How to stay, how to not get killed by the police, don't get 
involved in something they are doing. It is pretty much 
commonsense.
    I want it to remain about the kids, American citizens that 
have been lost. I think this gentleman over here, Mr. Johnson, 
said that you could fill this room. You could fill stadiums. 
They don't keep statistics. They don't want statistics. They 
don't want you to know how many people--
    Mr. Van Drew. Ms. Wilkerson, I'm sorry. I get to be the bad 
guy today. I don't mean to be. I really could listen to all of 
you all day. I am trying, as Chair, to get it under control. We 
have let everybody on both sides--
    Ms. Wilkerson. Thank you. No problem. I can talk for--
    Mr. Van Drew. I know, I know. I thank you for that. Does 
the gentleman yield back?
    Mr. Gill. Yes, I yield back.
    Mr. Van Drew. Thank you. I thank the gentleman. With that, 
I recognize the Ranking Member, Jasmine Crockett.
    Ms. Crockett. Thank you so much. I hear your rage. I don't 
have children and literally have never lost a child, nor have 
one injured, to actually really be in your shoes. One thing 
that I can tell you about the redirection is because so often 
what we see happen is politicians play games. The reality is 
that if you are talking about a sanctuary city, then we are 
talking about city government. We are talking about local 
control, something that the Republicans used to espouse that 
they believed in. They used to believe in whoever lives in that 
city, you elect who is going to run that city. That city, 
whether it is the police department, which it is the police 
department and law enforcement that make the decisions about 
what they do. We don't pick the police chief for any given 
city, not on the Federal level. That comes from the city level. 
That comes from whoever the people of that city actually elect 
to represent them. I believe in local control.
    Same thing. I live in Texas, too; and, baby, I wish I 
didn't have to deal with Governor Greg Abbott. Local control 
dictates that he is the Governor of our State; and, therefore, 
we have State reps, we have State Senators, and we have a 
Governor, and we have county elected officials and city elected 
officials. We are sitting in Washington, DC, right now. We are 
on the Federal level.
    What I believe in is something that the Republicans used to 
scream, which is local control. When we're having a 
conversation and a hearing about the human toll, the title 
specifically is the ``Human Toll of Sanctuary Policies: Stories 
from Victims and Families,'' my deal is we aren't the ones that 
decide what cities do.
    What they have decided to do is they have decided to play 
on your pain, and that is why I am frustrated. Because hear me 
when I say this: I have seen people, whether it was an American 
citizen or not that killed your child or harmed your child, I 
believe it is wrong. To me, it wouldn't have made it any less 
painful, and I could be wrong again because I don't have any 
kids, but if, for some reason, it had been a U.S. citizen that 
ended up harming or killing your child, the pain would still be 
there. It would still hurt. The reality is that what we need to 
do is make sure we are protecting everybody in this country.
    I don't wake up and somehow people look and see that 
there's a ``D'' somewhere around my head or something; and so, 
therefore, I am going to somehow be precluded from harm 
becoming me. When I go out to do policy work--and I have worked 
on the State level, too. The policies that I was writing when I 
was on the State level are different from the Federal level 
because we have different levels of control.
    The one thing that we do have control of you may have 
recognized that the DHS secretary, as we're talking about 
immigration, had to come before this Committee. I want to say 
maybe a day or two after she came before our Committee--because 
we have jurisdiction over her. We don't have jurisdiction over 
your mayors. We have jurisdiction over her. She lost her job. 
The DHS secretary is gone. Now, to be clear about this, the 
Republican President is the one that put her out of her job 
because she was failing.
    The reason that my colleagues have brought these things 
up--and this isn't to say that the harm and the hurt that you 
are feeling, that you should not be feeling that. It is wrong. 
Again, even as a criminal defense attorney, I can't tell you 
how many times I was begging clients to enter pleas.
    In fact, it literally made me remember a case that I had 
with a guy who was a veteran. He had served this country. He 
ended up being put on some new medication, and he also ended up 
drinking with that medication. Now, the medication had a 
warning on the bottle, but he went out, he drove, and he killed 
someone's mother. That client told me he had no criminal 
history. He told me over and over and over, he said, ``just 
give me whatever they are going to give me.'' They offered him 
the max, which was 20 years, and I could not, in good 
conscience, knowing that a jury would not give him the max.
    The only reason we went to trial is because the prosecutor 
wanted to be so greedy. That jury did not give him 20 years. He 
was willing to take 15 years.
    I am here to tell you that it is never right to break any 
of our laws. The reason that we have gone down the line and the 
reason that we brought Mr. Romanucci is because we actually 
have control over CBP, DHS, and ICE. It's just that these guys 
don't want to exacerbate, use that control. They sit there and 
they allow U.S. citizens and non-U.S. citizens to have their 
rights violated, and that is something within our purview.
    If I lived in one of your cities--in fact, I am in Dallas. 
Dallas has a Republican mayor. To be a sanctuary city doesn't 
necessarily mean that you provide sanctuary. It means that you 
are not going to do the Federal Government's job. That is what 
it means. They are local law enforcement. What it means is that 
they are not going to sit there and do the job of Federal 
agents. That is what a sanctuary city means.
    To be clear again, and I have more articles, the city of 
Houston was not--when you talk about someone being a sanctuary 
city, it is an official policy that they are following. It 
can't be that it is one person. It is the official policy of 
the city. Otherwise, it doesn't work if it is just one person.
    I will yield. Thank you, Mr. Chair, for your indulgence.
    Mr. Van Drew. Sure. Yes, the gentleman is recognized.
    Mr. Gill. Thank God she won't be back next Congress, but I 
would like to ask for unanimous consent to enter into the 
record a few different things. First, ``ICE agent struck by 
Renee Good's vehicle suffered internal bleeding to torso, DHS 
says.''
    Next, ``DHS reaches more than 4,000 arrests of illegal 
aliens, including murderers, sex offenders, gang members, and 
terrorists in Minnesota since Operation Metro Search began.''
    Another, ``UPDATE, DHS deploys special operations after 
multiple violent attacks on Federal law enforcement by domestic 
terrorists in Chicago.''
    Mr. Van Drew. Without objection. I recognize myself for 
five minutes. I want to thank you all for being here, even you, 
Mr. Romanucci. Thank you.
    Mr. Romanucci. Thank you.
    Mr. Van Drew. I know it is hard to believe--I don't have 
the words. I don't have the words. It is hard to believe that 
there are people in politics who give a damn. I swear to God 
there are. I am not going to comment on the other side; I am 
not going to talk about Republicans and Democrats. I am not 
going to talk about Epstein. I am not going to talk about all 
the politics that is swirling around.
    Because so much of it, a lot of times, is BS. You know that 
because you have lived it. You have had to sit in hearings, 
talk to reporters, talk to politicians, and hear all this crap. 
I can speak for me, and I know there is other Members sitting 
up here, if you could feel our hearts, I swear to God. I know I 
said in the beginning it is not enough. I only can say I am 
sorry.
    You guys did a good job. You did a good job. This isn't 
alligator tears or any BS. I admire you for what you have done. 
It is a big deal. It is as hard on you because you have 
somebody that is so incapacitated, and you are there every day. 
Thank you for what you do because your love is so great.
    The three of you have so much faith. That is the one thing 
I got out of this. Thank you for that, as well.
    We talked today about, and I respect the Ranking Member, 
about local government. Yes, it is local governments that are 
doing this. It is States and it is cities, but they are 
breaking the law. They are breaking Federal law. You all said 
it; frankly, we have had legislation that has come before us 
that we have voted for, but it is not going to make it all the 
way through. Not enough people voted for it, that those cities, 
those towns, those counties, those States don't get their 
funding. You want to see politicians run? Man, you take away 
the money that they get, they are going to run.
    Yes, there are States' rights. I believe in the 
individuality of the States' rights and how our constitution 
was set up. First, it doesn't allow you to break Federal law. 
Second, we had wide open borders, man; we just did. This isn't 
a political debate. Nobody is going to vote for or against me 
on anything in this room today, but we did. We let really bad 
people in. Somebody, one of our Members, said, well, 
``tragedies happen and it could have been an American citizen 
who did that.'' Yes, we couldn't help that because they are an 
American citizen. How do we know? You don't know when you wake 
up in the morning what somebody's going to do to you or to your 
family, your children, whatever.
    This was preventable. That is the word here. You broke the 
law. They broke the law, and it was preventable. It didn't have 
to be that way. We have talked about it for years.
    I love immigrants. I love legal immigrants. Many of us, our 
parents, our grandparents, and our great grandparents came 
here. They busted their ass to make a living and to do the 
right thing and to be responsible. They were good people. That 
is not what we are talking about here.
    An aspect of all this that we have didn't even mention is 
how much this cost us. Who cares about the money when you think 
a human life. Even beyond that, some of these people we have to 
transport, we have to feed them, we have to house them, and we 
have to educate them. It is nothing against immigrants, and it 
is not trying to hurt anybody. They broke the law and some of 
them are Godawful. Those statistics that everybody has read 
today, they are real. It is not three or four. It is thousands 
and millions were let in our country. No country has ever 
prevailed in all world history when it just bleeds open like 
that.
    This hearing, more importantly than the politics, liberal, 
conservative, Republican, and Democrat, I just wanted people to 
hear. I wish every American, I swear to God, so they didn't 
have to hear us, but I wish they could just hear you. It's why 
your job is so hard because you know what? Let me tell, truth 
be told, yes, we will do some news hits maybe. Mr. Schmidt will 
get interviewed or I will get interviewed or Jasmine will get 
interviewed. A lot of people aren't going to know what happened 
here today. They're not. You have to keep pushing, and you have 
to keep working. I want you to know, and I mean this, forget 
the BS politics. A lot of people love you for what you have 
done and the courage you have shown. You didn't have to do it. 
This is a pain coming here, and you really live that pain every 
single time you do it and you don't know who is telling you the 
truth and who is BS'ing you. There are people who care, and I 
pray to God that someday this works out and we don't keep doing 
this.
    I thank you for that. I had a bunch of questions. I don't 
even have the time.
    Mr. Romanucci. Mr. Chair, may I be recognized for 30 
seconds?
    Mr. Van Drew. Yes, you may.
    Mr. Romanucci. Thank you so much. First, whether it was by 
intentional or by happenstance, I embrace the position where I 
am sitting. I hug Moms like you all the time, and I do feel 
your pain. I am fine with where I sit in my position.
    Chair, you are powerful. When you asked us to stand and say 
the Pledge of Allegiance, we all followed you, and the last 
words that we said were liberty and justice for all. I am an 
advocate, and that is what I believe in, and I am asking this 
Congress, this Committee, to find a commonsense approach to 
immigration so that we don't have to do this again. You don't 
have to come back here in a year or 10 years. Ever. Thank you.
    Ms. Heiling. Thirty seconds for me. Just to answer--
    Mr. Van Drew. I probably broke--by the way, they are not 
laws. I probably broke all kinds of rules today, just so you 
know, and I don't care.
    Ms. Heiling. When Ms. Crockett said she doesn't have 
children, so she doesn't know, we are not wired to process the 
type of tragedy that we are living. We are not. There are no 
words. I will tell you it does feel different when an illegal 
immigrant kills your children than it does an American because 
it was preventable. It feels different, not that I know that 
because I have had an American kill a child. When something is 
preventable and your life is ruined from something that is 
preventable, it does hit a little different than what I would 
imagine it would feel like just a regular casualty.
    Loss, in itself, is so difficult, there is no words. Loss 
is loss. It is very tragic. What we are dealing with, when it 
is preventable, when these people have done something and they 
weren't asked to leave, if I were to go to Honduras where the 
woman who killed our children is from and I would kill two 
teenagers there, I am not getting any rights from the 
Hondurans. They are not giving me rights. It is different. This 
is preventable.
    I say it does hit a little differently when our tragedy is 
preventable.
    Mr. Van Drew. Thank you. Thank you. Mr. Schmidt.
    Mr. Schmidt. Thank you, Mr. Chair. In addition to our 
witnesses today, we have others who wish to be sure the 
Committee of the record know their stories. They were unable to 
testify, so I have some unanimous consent requests--
    Mr. Van Drew. Without objection.
    Mr. Schmidt. I would like to enter into the record a 
statement from Zoey Heiling, the sister of Brady Heiling. I 
would like to enter into the record a statement from Korri 
Heiling, the sister of Brady Heiling; a statement from John and 
Deborah Hosek, I believe, the grandparents; a statement from 
Agnes Gibboney, an Angel Mom; a statement from Joe Abraham, an 
Angel Parent.
    Mr. Van Drew. Without objection.
    Mr. Schmidt. Thank you. I yield back.
    Mr. Van Drew. Thank you, Mr. Schmidt. That concludes--oh, 
I'm sorry.
    Ms. Crockett. Sorry. One more UC. This is from the Houston 
Chronicle, ``Houston is not a city by the definition.'' This is 
from June 30, 2006. More specifically, just if you will indulge 
me for two seconds to actually read something that is actually 
a part of the article, it says that, ``Houston police are 
required to check the warrant status of everyone who is 
ticketed, arrested, or jailed . . . ''--
    Mr. Gill. I don't think it is in order for you to be 
reading articles here.
    Mr. Van Drew. We are going to give her leeway. Don't argue. 
Just finish.
    Ms. Crockett. Because you know I'm ready to--OK. ``ICE 
officials are given full access to city jails . . . ''
    Mr. Van Drew. Without objection, without objection.
    Ms. Crockett. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
    Mr. Van Drew. OK. That concludes today's hearing. We thank 
our witnesses for appearing before the Committee today. Without 
objection, all Members do have five legislative days to submit 
additional written questions for the witnesses or additional 
materials for the record.
    Without objection, this hearing is adjourned.
    [Whereupon, the above-entitled matter went off the record 
at 4:24 p.m.]

    All materials submitted for the record by Members of the 
Subcommittee on Oversight can be found at: https://
docs.house.gov/Committee/Calendar/ByEvent.aspx?EventID=119166.

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