ICE agent charged after ramming unmarked SUV into man in Texas
Key Points:
- Mario Alberto Morales, a 33-year-old ICE agent, was indicted for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after deliberately running over Miguel Parra Hernandez during a botched traffic stop in Texas, causing severe injuries.
- Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare criticized ICE's training and tactics, highlighting the impact of immigration enforcement on community safety and accusing the agency of instilling fear among residents.
- Surveillance footage showed Morales's unmarked SUV striking Parra Hernandez, a Mexican construction worker with no criminal record, while ICE initially claimed the victim ran into the vehicle.
- ICE denied intentional wrongdoing, calling the indictment a political stunt and asserting that only federal agencies can investigate their officers, while local authorities found unsafe conditions during the incident, including detainees handcuffed in Morales's vehicle.
- Parra Hernandez remains in ICE custody with serious injuries requiring multiple surgeries, and the investigation revealed that ICE deported key witnesses despite prosecutor objections; the whereabouts of the original enforcement target remain unknown.