Tim Walz Pardons Illegal Alien Convicted Of Raping A Child
Governor Tim Walz and the Minnesota Board of Pardons have generated national outrage over the decision to pardon a convicted illegal alien sex offender who was previously convicted of sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl and who was on track to be deported.
On June 10, the Minnesota Board of Pardons granted a pardon to Tou Lue Vang, a 42-year-old Laos national, for his 2006 conviction of first-degree criminal sexual conduct. The three-member board, consisting of Governor Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Chief Justice Natalie Hudson, acted following a recommendation from the Minnesota Clemency Review Commission.
Vang was born in 1983 in a refugee camp in Thailand. He entered the United States in 1994 at age 11 as a refugee and later became a permanent resident. He ultimately settled in Minnesota with his family in the Hmong community.
Between approximately 2002 and 2006, Vang repeatedly sexually assaulted a girl who was 10 years old at the start of the abuse. He pleaded guilty in 2005 to first-degree criminal sexual conduct as part of a plea agreement that resulted in no prison time and 30 years of probation.
The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office has opposed the pardon, noting that the lenient original sentence stemmed in part from pressure on the victim’s family.
In his pardon application, Vang cited years of rehabilitation and stated he had taken full responsibility for his actions. “The shame and regret I carry — especially as my children have grown older and learned about my past — run deep. If it were possible to undo what happened, I would do so without hesitation,” he wrote in a letter addressed to the pardon board.
The victim also provided an unsigned statement to the board. “What happened to me was wrong, but I have had many years to think about this. I have made peace with it. I forgive him,” she wrote.
The Clemency Review Commission reviewed the petition and voted in April 2026 to recommend approval by a margin of four in favor, two against, with three members absent. On June 10, the Board of Pardons granted the pardon, which restores Vang’s civil rights and provides a clean criminal record for most purposes.
“The Minnesota Board of Pardons made a unanimous decision to grant Tou Vang this pardon after an exhaustive process which included a statement of support for the pardon from the victim, a recommendation to grant the pardon from the Clemency Review Commission and a large number of community support letters,” Attorney General Keith Ellison’s Office said following the announcement.
Governor Walz’s office noted that the victim’s letter carried significant weight and emphasized the unanimous board decision following review of victim input, the commission recommendation, and community letters. Board members have stated in related proceedings that immigration status or pending deportation is not, by itself, a basis for granting or denying a pardon, and that multiple factors including rehabilitation are considered.
Following the 2006 conviction, Vang lost his legal immigration status. An immigration judge issued a final order of removal in 2006. For years, Laos declined to accept deportees from the United States. This policy changed after the start of the current presidential administration.
In late 2025, Vang was detained by federal immigration authorities during Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota and was facing imminent deportation to Laos prior to the pardon.
“Governor Tim Walz’s decision to pardon an illegal alien convicted child rapist so he can remain in our country is disgusting. These are the criminal illegal aliens he and his Minnesota sanctuary politicians are protecting,” a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said in response to the pardon.
“Tou Lue Vang lost his legal status following his conviction for repeatedly sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl. Following the conviction, he was placed in removal proceedings and issued a final order of removal by a judge. This pardon will take away this child rapist’s qualifying convictions that made him removable from the United States.”
A state pardon removes the underlying criminal conviction from Vang’s record. According to DHS, this eliminates the conviction that formed the basis for his removal order. The pardon does not automatically confer legal immigration status or prevent all possible federal immigration actions, though it does provide Vang with grounds to challenge deportation proceedings in immigration court.