Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI) is calling for all federal funds to be cut off from Dane County, Wisconsin, a sanctuary jurisdiction, after high school sweethearts 18-year-old Hallie Helgeson and 19-year-old Brady Heiling were killed in a drunk driving crash, allegedly at the hands of an illegal alien.
As Breitbart News reported, on July 20, illegal alien Noelia A. Martinez of Honduras, 30 years old, was allegedly drunk driving in Dane County when she crashed into Hallie and Brady.
Hallie was killed immediately and pronounced dead at the scene, while Brady was left in critical condition, airlifted to a nearby hospital, and died from his injuries on July 25. Hallie and Brady were high school sweethearts and had attended senior prom together shortly before the crash.
Martinez, who had a criminal record that included several driving violations, was apparently able to hide from federal immigration enforcement partly due to Dane County’s sanctuary policy, which refuses to honor ICE detainers. These detainers are requests for custody whenever an illegal alien is released from local custody.
Tiffany, who represents a district north of Dane County, said Hallie and Brady’s deaths ought to spur federal officials into action — cutting off “all funding to sanctuary jurisdictions.”
“An illegal alien with a prior drunk driving conviction killed two teens in Dane County,” Tiffany wrote on X. “DHS says Dane County’s sanctuary policies protected the illegal from deportation. We must end these dangerous Democrat policies and cut all funding to sanctuary jurisdictions.”
Tiffany also called out Dane County Sheriff Kalvin Barrett, who has defended sanctuary policies even since Hallie and Brady’s deaths.
“Sheriff Barrett called me a LIAR when I warned Dane County’s sanctuary policies put lives at risk,” Tiffany wrote. “Now, two teens are dead after a repeat illegal alien offender was allowed to remain in the community. How many more Americans have to die before Democrats end this lawlessness?”
Tiffany noted the House passed H.R. 875, the Jeremy and Angel Seay and Sergeant Brandon Mendoza Protect Our Communities from DUIs Act of 2025, earlier this year. The bill requires federal immigration officials to take custody of and deport illegal aliens convicted of drunk driving.
One hundred and sixty House Democrats opposed the bill.
“This year, 160 House Democrats voted against deporting illegal aliens convicted of drunk driving,” Tiffany wrote on X. “Now two teens are dead — killed by an illegal alien with a previous drunk driving conviction. This is what happens when politicians put illegals over American lives.”
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter here.
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