California Governor Gavin Newsom is facing sharp federal criticism after pardoning Somboon Phaymany, a criminal illegal immigrant who had previously been placed in removal proceedings following his conviction.
Phaymany was 19 years old at the time of his conviction in California to a New York Post report. As a result of the case, he lost his green card and was later placed into immigration removal proceedings. In 2019, an immigration judge issued a final order of removal against him, which would allow ICE deportation to proceed.
Despite that history, Newsom granted Phaymany executive clemency in December 2025. In the official pardon notice, Gavin Newsom wrote: “This act of clemency for Mr. Phaymany does not minimize or forgive his conduct or the harm it caused. It does recognize the work he has done since to transform himself.” The governor cited evidence of rehabilitation and personal reform as justification for restoring his civic rights.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a pardon to Somboon Phaymany, erasing his 1997 conviction on 10 counts of premeditated attempted murder and effectively shielding him from being deported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.https://t.co/bAC9tVMKLH pic.twitter.com/nuYwu9NSBF
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) February 23, 2026
Phaymany had applied for executive clemency early last year, beginning the formal process that ultimately resulted in the pardon. Federal officials argue that the governor’s action directly altered Phaymany’s immigration standing. The Department of Homeland Security stated that the pardon allows him to “re-open immigration proceedings rather than be removed from the U.S. and will be able to remain in California communities.”
Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin strongly condemned the move, saying, “Gavin Newsom’s pardon took away this attempted murderer’s qualifying convictions that made him removable from the U.S.” In a separate statement, she added, “Governor Newsom pardoning an illegal alien convicted of attempted murder, so he can remain in our country is absolute INSANITY. These are the criminal illegal aliens he and his sanctuary politicians are protecting. He is putting the lives of all Americans at risk.”
Under federal immigration law, certain felony convictions serve as legal grounds for removal. While a gubernatorial pardon does not erase the conviction itself, it can eliminate the specific legal basis that makes an individual deportable.
Gavin Newsom pardons criminal illegal migrant convicted for attempted murder: DHS https://t.co/F8axncOeIi pic.twitter.com/8NqZqhLabQ
— New York Post (@nypost) February 23, 2026
The controversy comes amid broader tension between California officials and federal immigration authorities. Earlier this month, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement sent a formal letter to Gavin Newsom and the state’s attorney general urging them to halt “sanctuary” policies that allow criminal undocumented immigrants to be released from local custody rather than transferred to federal authorities.
In its correspondence, ICE pressed state officials to clarify whether California intends to honor federal immigration detainers — formal requests asking local law enforcement agencies to temporarily hold an undocumented immigrant who is about to be released from custody, either after an arrest or upon completing a criminal sentence, so federal authorities can assume custody.
The letter underscored growing frustration from federal officials who argue that failure to comply with these detainer requests allows removable individuals to leave jail facilities rather than face immigration enforcement. According to the federal government, at least 4,500 undocumented immigrants with prior criminal records have been released back into communities across the United States by California authorities instead of being transferred to ICE custody, a figure that has intensified the ongoing clash between state sanctuary policies and federal immigration enforcement efforts.
ICE officials warned that such policies enable individuals with serious criminal histories to leave jail facilities and return to communities instead of facing immigration enforcement action.
Gavin Newsom has long defended California’s sanctuary framework, arguing it strengthens trust between immigrant communities and law enforcement. However, high-profile clemency decisions involving illegal immigrants with serious convictions continue to draw national scrutiny.
With Phaymany’s prior final order of removal now potentially reopened due to the pardon, the case has become a focal point in the escalating clash between California’s executive authority and federal immigration enforcement priorities.
