While true a governor cannot pardon a Federal crime, s/he can pardon the state crime(s) that underlie the order of deportation, issued because of criminal activity. Wipe out the crime and supposedly the perp cannot be deported unless we finally start deporting people on the sole basis of illegal entry.
It would be interesting to find out just what crimes are being forgiven and how the victims feel about that.
And what of the many other convicts of differing backgrounds.
An illegal from Somalia is pardoned. But the black guy from Queens rots away; forgotten.