Illegal Immigrant Accused of Burning NY Woman Faces Murder Charges - but NYC Will Ignore an ICE Detainer

The illegal alien who is accused of the murder by burning of a New York City woman on that city's subway, Sebastian Zapeta, is being arraigned on murder charges. That's as it should be; this is a particularly callous crime and a demonstration of an utter disregard for human life. Hopefully, Zapeta will be convicted, and spend a long, long time — preferably the rest of his life — behind bars.

Sebastian Zapeta, 33, was indicted on one count of murder in the first degree, three counts of murder in the second degree and one count of arson after a woman was lit on fire and burned to death on a subway train in Brooklyn, New York. The indictment was filed Thursday and will be unsealed at an arraignment hearing on Jan. 7.
Zapeta's attorney told the judge he spoke with his client Friday and asked for permission to waive his client's appearance. The judge granted the request.

That's the good news. Now, the bad news:

Zapeta is a previously deported immigrant from Guatemala who first entered the country in June 2018. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) told Fox News that it has lodged an immigration detainer with the New York City Department of Corrections for Zapeta, but the corrections department has indicated it will not honor the detainer, per its current policy. An immigration detainer is a request by ICE to take a person into its custody.

Now, it's tempting to think that this isn't a big deal. After all, if Zapeta is convicted, there's little chance he will ever breathe free air again, and that's as it should be. But his case is a great example of everything that's wrong with our policies on illegal immigration today.

First, as my colleague Teri Christoph recently pointed out, Zapeta never should have been in the United States in the first place.

Subway Savage Who Lit Woman on Fire, Watched Her Burn to Death Should Not Have Been in the United States

Teri writes:

Law enforcement officials have identified that man as Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, 33, an illegal immigrant from Guatemala who, according to federal immigration sources, first entered the country illegally on June 1, 2018, was deported a week later and snuck back into the United States at some point.
Once back in the U.S., Zapeta made his way to New York City and was housed at a migrant shelter, although it's still unclear how long he's been living there...

Second, despite this man's illegal status, his horrific crime, despite his horrendous disregard for another human's life, New York City is refusing to honor an ICE detainer for Zapeta.

The wrong here isn't in this individual case, necessarily. Zapeta will be tried as such crimes are normally tried, within the jurisdiction of the City and County of New York. The wrong is New York City's refusal of an ICE detainer — as a policy. Immigration enforcement and the decisions to be made in this enforcement are within the constitutional role of the federal government; in fact, they are one of the few things that are undeniably the role of the national government. The Constitution, in Article VI, Clause 2, states:

This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.

The city of New York — or any other city — cannot simply choose to ignore ICE officers carrying out their duty, as defined by statute and as authorized by the Constitution. And yet, here we are.

In January, Tom "The Hammer" Homan will be taking control of the federal government's immigration and border enforcement. He has already promised to apply the law vigorously, including against state and local officials who impede the enforcement of federal laws, pour encourager les autres. Maybe he should start with New York.