Great Lakes Wire

Paul Hudson, a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 3rd District, criticized his opponent, Rep. Hillary Scholten, stating that she "couldn't even bring herself to acknowledge that Ruby Garcia's murderer was an illegal immigrant." Hudson made these remarks in a news release posted on March 28.

"In a local television interview, she couldn't even bring herself to acknowledge that Ruby Garcia's murderer was an illegal immigrant with a lengthy arrest record, calling him simply instead 'a person who did not have authorization to be here," said Hudson, U.S. House candidate for Michigan's 3rd District, according to X. "This is a disappointing and inadequate response from our representative in Congress."

Ruby Garcia was discovered deceased with gunshot wounds on the side of U.S. Highway 131 on March 22, as reported by WWMT local news. The confessed killer, Brandon Ortiz-Vite, 25, was allegedly in the country illegally and had several encounters with law enforcement but remained in the United States. According to police records, Ortiz-Vite had been previously arrested for illegal entry into a home in Wyoming and driving without a valid license. He faced charges including felony murder, open murder, carjacking, carrying a concealed weapon, and felony firearm. Ortiz-Vite is a Mexican citizen.

Screenshot of post on X | X

WZZM local news reported that Ortiz-Vite was deported in 2020 but managed to re-enter the United States afterwards. Pete Hoekstra, the Chairman of Michigan Republican Party commented on this situation saying: "It's why we really do need to secure our border; we're in favor of immigration. But let's manage our immigration process... I'm an immigrant... we came through a process. And that's what we need to get back to." Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten (D) told WZZM: "I'm continuing to push for bipartisan immigration reform that both secures our border and makes sure that individuals who come to our country are fully vetted to keep our communities safe."

Hudson expressed dissatisfaction with Scholten's response which he deemed as "inadequate," according to a post on X platform. He argued that "serious-minded people want to identify the systemic breakdowns in our national immigration policies that have allowed violent criminals to repeatedly enter and remain in our country."

Hudson's campaign website reveals that he is a native of West Michigan with degrees from Cornell University and Georgetown Law. He currently serves as a senior partner at Miller Canfield and has been nominated to serve on the Michigan Supreme Court in the past.