Police evidence markers at the scene of a fatal gunfight between police and a man who was in the U.S. illegally. (ScReen snip, YouTube, KING)
By Dave Workman
Senior Editor
The man who gunned down a Kittitas County, Wash., sheriff’s deputy and wounded a small town police officer was in the United States illegally after having overstayed his visa, according to authorities.
Kittitas County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Thompson was killed in a gun battle with Juan Manuel Flores Del Toro, who was also fatally wounded. Kittitas Police Officer Benito Chavez was wounded but survived the shootout, which was the culmination of a traffic stop due to a road rage complaint.
In the aftermath, gun rights activists were wondering how long it would take before anti-gunners began blaming the gun, rather than the fact that liberal “sanctuary” policies make it possible for illegal immigrants to remain in this country. Del Toro, came to the U.S. legally on a work visa in 2014, crossing the border at Laredo, according to published reports. But that visa expired two years ago, and he was still here, living in the Ellensburg area, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reportedly had no record that Del Toro ever went back to Mexico, nor did he extend the work visa.
Washington is a “sanctuary state,” as declared by liberal Democrat Gov. Jay Inslee, who is running for president in 2020. Second Amendment activists point to his hypocrisy for complaining that several counties have essentially become “Second Amendment sanctuary counties” where a restrictive gun control initiative is not being enforced. Initiative 1639 was passed by voters in November 2018, but its provisions are considered unconstitutional by some 20 sheriffs and the county commissions in eight counties.
Initiative 1639 raised the age limit for purchasing any kind of semi-auto rifle, and defined all semi-autos as “semiautomatic assault rifles.” It I being challenged in federal district court by the Second Amendment Foundation and National Rifle Association.
Now, in a case that many are arguing on social media puts blood on the hands of so-called “sanctuary” advocates including Inslee and Attorney General Bob Ferguson, another Democrat. Neither one seems very friendly to the Second Amendment, and both supported an anti-gun initiative that passed last November but is now the cause of what could be called an insurrection involving local county governments and sheriff’s departments.
Writing at MyNorthwest.com, KIRO radio host Dori Monson contended that Inslee owes an explanation and apology for Deputy Thompson’s death, because the governor is a strong advocate of the “sanctuary” movement. Monson even included an Inslee quote that fully explains the would-be president’s philosophy:
“Other places close their borders and fear the unfamiliar. We are the state that opens our communities to immigrants and refugees seeking safety, shelter, and sanctuary,” Inslee wrote.
