Could Newsom’s pardon of Pismo’s manager help him escape ICE detention? Attorney weighs in

FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Governor Gavin Newsom has granted clemency to the manager of a popular north Fresno restaurant who has been in ICE custody for months. 

Psalm Behpoor was 18 at the time he committed first-degree burglary in the early 2000s. 

He’s been the longtime manager of Pismo’s Coastal Grill on Blackstone Avenue. But since June, he has been staying at the Mesa Verde ICE processing facility in Bakersfield. 

“I’m praying to God that when they look at this, the administration understands that, ‘Hey, this guy has rehabilitated himself, he’s not who he used to be, he’s 100% fighting for the American Dream,” he said over the phone in August. 

At the time, he had hoped a hearing in September would allow for his release. 

Behpoor served three years and four months in prison after he was convicted of first-degree residential burglary in 2004. He said that crime had unexpected consequences. 

He was born in Iran and fled the country with his family when he was 3 years old. He got a green card at 13 but lost it after his conviction. He started working to get it back in 2024, but was ultimately detained during an immigration interview this summer. 

But now his case has caught the attention of the Governor. Newsom released a letter Friday granting a full and unconditional pardon. The letter says it “does not minimize or forgive his conduct”, and goes on to add that it “does recognize the work he has done since to transform himself.” 

And Fresno Attorney George Rios, who has some knowledge of the case, said that may be enough to help Behpoor even though it doesn’t grant his release. 

“That’s a big deal because, like I said, if that was the underlying basis for him being placed in removal proceedings to begin with, now an immigration attorney can go in and, with that legal argument, make that argument that he is no longer removable as he was originally charged,” Rios said.  

Rios also believed all the media attention likely helped Newsom become aware of Behpoor’s case so quickly. He said that often people are waiting for clemency for years. He added, it was likely another way for Newsom to look like he’s fighting back against President Donald Trump’s administration.