JOE ABRAHAM: Sanctuary Policies Killed My Daughter. It’s Time To End This Nightmare

My daughter Katie was just 20 years old. A junior at Ohio University. Bright, beautiful, and full of life. She had a spark you cannot teach and a heart that loved deeply. She was the kind of person who made others feel seen. And now she is gone forever — because of a broken immigration system and the cowardice of politicians who chose politics over public safety.

Katie was killed by an illegal immigrant, Julio Cucul Bol, who had already been deported once and reentered the United States in 2022, completely undetected, according to local law enforcement and the State’s Attorney.

On Jan.19, 2025, Bol got behind the wheel — allegedly after drinking — and drove nearly 80 miles per hour, and plowed into the car my daughter was riding in. The State’s Attorney has said they are confident, based on video evidence, witness statements, and other details that he had been drinking earlier in the night. Katie died at the scene and her friend passed away the following day.

Bol did not stay. He did not help. He fled the scene on foot – carrying fake documents and living under a fake name, according to Urbana police and prosecutors. He was arrested in Texas just days later, attempting to flee to Mexico.

This is the kind of person Gov. JB Pritzker’s sanctuary policies protected.

Illinois is a sanctuary state. That means the state actively refuses to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement until an illegal alien commits a serious crime. It prohibits law enforcement from coordinating with ICE. It allows people who are in this country illegally, even those with criminal records, to live here without consequence. The man who killed my daughter should never have been in the country or Illinois in the first place. Pritzker and others like him do not protect immigrant families. They enabled criminals and sacrificed innocent Americans and other immigrants.