California’s governor has issued pardons to two formerly incarcerated firefighters who had been threatened with deportation to Laos after spending most of their lives in the US. Gavin Newsom on Friday announced the pardons for Bounchan Keola, 39, and Kao Saelee, 41, who were both sent to US immigration authorities last year after spending decades in prison for teenage convictions and had battled wildfires as incarcerated firefighters. “I could never have imagined this would happen,” Saelee told the Guardian by phone after learning the news. “I thought somebody was trying to prank me, but [the governor] said, ‘Thank you for your service as a firefighter and keep up the good work,’” Keola told the Guardian after the call. After Saelee and Keola spoke out, state lawmakers across California called for Newsom to pardon them and pushed for legislation that would end the transfers and protect people from deportation.

Source: The Guardian May 29, 2021 01:41 UTC