Prosecutor: Nephew said driver in East Oakland crash didn't care
Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
An Oakland man charged Monday with murdering two children in a Thanksgiving night hit-and-run crash told his 17-year-old nephew moments before impact that he didn't care if he or the teenager died as a result of his speeding, a prosecutor said.
Carmelo Salas, 28, was charged with murder in the deaths of Stephanie Cervantez, 14, and her 4-year-old cousin, Jacklin Munguia-Herrera, for allegedly running a stop sign in East Oakland and crashing his Ford Expedition sport utility vehicle into a Ford Mustang carrying the victims about 7:20 p.m. Thursday.
Salas fled after the crash at 89th Avenue and D Street but was arrested early the next morning, police said.
He was charged with murder under the theory of implied malice, which is defined as engaging in an unlawful act done in "conscious disregard" of the risk to human life, prosecutor Norbert Chu said.
Salas told his nephew, who was in the SUV with him, that he wasn't afraid to die and that he would take his nephew with him, Chu said. Salas was going as fast as 80 mph in a 25-mph zone, and the nephew warned him seconds before impact that the Mustang was approaching, the prosecutor said.
Salas was also charged with two counts of assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury for hurting Jacklin's mother, Laura Herrera, 23, who was driving the Mustang, and Herrera's daughter, Evalyn Munguia, 3. Both Herrera and Munguia remain hospitalized in critical condition, authorities said.
Salas was also charged with kidnapping his nephew to ride with him in the SUV, Chu said. The nephew feared for his safety because he knew Salas could be "volatile" when he was drinking, Chu said. Police said the nephew helped identify the suspect.
Police believe Salas was driving under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash. But prosecutors didn't charge him with DUI because several hours elapsed before he was arrested, making it impossible to measure his blood-alcohol level when the accident happened.
Salas is also the subject of a hold by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement because he is in the United States illegally from Mexico, authorities said.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
DE Illegal mom at fault in child's death
Mother of child killed by pickup is charged
Illegal immigrant faces deportation to Mexico
By ALAN J. McCOMBS, The News Journal
Posted Wednesday, November 28, 2007
A woman who was struck by a pickup while trying to cross a highway with her children -- one of whom was killed in the June 9 accident -- faces child endangerment charges and possibly deportation after police learned she is an illegal immigrant from Mexico.
Maria Navarro-Luna, 31, was charged Tuesday with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Police say she was pushing a stroller carrying toddler Luzero Navarro-Luna and leading her 7-year-old daughter by the hand across U.S. 40 near its intersection with Salem Church Road, and crossed into the path of a 1993 Chevrolet 1500.
The impact left the 7-year-old in critical condition with broken legs and a broken neck, as well as injuries to her liver and kidneys. Maria Navarro-Luna also suffered multiple broken bones.
The baby died the next day.
Because a crosswalk was 230 feet from where they entered the roadway, Delaware State Police spokesman Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh said, authorities decided to charge her.
Navarro-Luna told The News Journal in July that she had crossed U.S. 40 in the past without incident.
"The crosswalk was only a few meters away, but I had always crossed [where the accident happened] and been safe," she said in that interview.
Responsibility for the crash is something Navarro-Luna has been dealing with since it occurred, said Shannon Breedlove, a family friend.
"She blames herself. She tries to be strong," she said. "She's smiling and her spirit is strong but she has moments where she breaks down and thinks people are judging her."
An investigation into the June 9 incident revealed Navarro-Luna, a resident of the Bear area for the past two years, had come to the U.S. illegally after a previous failed attempt to cross the U.S. border, Whitmarsh said.
"Based on the circumstances surrounding her arrest for this case, in addition to her being here illegally and a prior attempt to enter here illegally, that information was presented to [the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service]," he said. "They are assessing the situation."
ICE does not comment on individual immigration proceedings due to privacy regulations, ICE spokesman Ernestine Fobbs said.
Breedlove said in a late morning conversation with Navarro-Luna that she was told she would be deported in the next 48 hours.
Diana Malero, another friend of Navarro-Luna, said she didn't understand why this was happening now.
"Why do they have to rush her? I don't understand the law," she said. "Its hard to accept the law would be that blind, that heartless."
When police arrested Navarro-Luna, she was allowed to contact family and friends to arrange care for her 2-year-old child who was with her, Whitmarsh said. Her 7-year-old child, who suffers short-term memory loss and is still recuperating from her injuries, was at school Tuesday.
Police notified the Mexican consulate about the move for deportation, Whitmarsh said.
Late Tuesday, relatives were taking care of the two children as Navarro-Luna waited at Baylor's Women's Correctional Center on $1,000 secured bail.
Illegal immigrant faces deportation to Mexico
By ALAN J. McCOMBS, The News Journal
Posted Wednesday, November 28, 2007
A woman who was struck by a pickup while trying to cross a highway with her children -- one of whom was killed in the June 9 accident -- faces child endangerment charges and possibly deportation after police learned she is an illegal immigrant from Mexico.
Maria Navarro-Luna, 31, was charged Tuesday with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Police say she was pushing a stroller carrying toddler Luzero Navarro-Luna and leading her 7-year-old daughter by the hand across U.S. 40 near its intersection with Salem Church Road, and crossed into the path of a 1993 Chevrolet 1500.
The impact left the 7-year-old in critical condition with broken legs and a broken neck, as well as injuries to her liver and kidneys. Maria Navarro-Luna also suffered multiple broken bones.
The baby died the next day.
Because a crosswalk was 230 feet from where they entered the roadway, Delaware State Police spokesman Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh said, authorities decided to charge her.
Navarro-Luna told The News Journal in July that she had crossed U.S. 40 in the past without incident.
"The crosswalk was only a few meters away, but I had always crossed [where the accident happened] and been safe," she said in that interview.
Responsibility for the crash is something Navarro-Luna has been dealing with since it occurred, said Shannon Breedlove, a family friend.
"She blames herself. She tries to be strong," she said. "She's smiling and her spirit is strong but she has moments where she breaks down and thinks people are judging her."
An investigation into the June 9 incident revealed Navarro-Luna, a resident of the Bear area for the past two years, had come to the U.S. illegally after a previous failed attempt to cross the U.S. border, Whitmarsh said.
"Based on the circumstances surrounding her arrest for this case, in addition to her being here illegally and a prior attempt to enter here illegally, that information was presented to [the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service]," he said. "They are assessing the situation."
ICE does not comment on individual immigration proceedings due to privacy regulations, ICE spokesman Ernestine Fobbs said.
Breedlove said in a late morning conversation with Navarro-Luna that she was told she would be deported in the next 48 hours.
Diana Malero, another friend of Navarro-Luna, said she didn't understand why this was happening now.
"Why do they have to rush her? I don't understand the law," she said. "Its hard to accept the law would be that blind, that heartless."
When police arrested Navarro-Luna, she was allowed to contact family and friends to arrange care for her 2-year-old child who was with her, Whitmarsh said. Her 7-year-old child, who suffers short-term memory loss and is still recuperating from her injuries, was at school Tuesday.
Police notified the Mexican consulate about the move for deportation, Whitmarsh said.
Late Tuesday, relatives were taking care of the two children as Navarro-Luna waited at Baylor's Women's Correctional Center on $1,000 secured bail.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Boone, NC drunk illegal kills
WSOCTV.com
Related To Story
Illegal Immigrant Accused Of Driving Drunk, Causing Fatal Boone Crash
POSTED: 5:30 pm EST November 26, 2007
BOONE, N.C. -- An illegal immigrant is accused of driving drunk in Boone over the Thanksgiving holiday and plowing into a sport utility vehicle, killing a man inside.
Boone police said Juan Manuel Juarez Reyes slammed into the rear of a Lexus SUV that was about to turn from Highway 105 onto Poplar Hill Drive shortly before 11 p.m. Friday. The SUV was skidded 250 feet, hitting a Watauga County deputy’s patrol car. The occupants of the SUV were trapped inside their vehicle but the deputy was not hurt.
The driver, Sallie Ellis Newell, and passenger Jacqueline Elizabeth Newell were taken to the Watauga County Medical Center where they were treated in released. But Brian Alan Newell and Andrew Russell Newell, who was in the back passenger-side seat, were flown to Johnson City Regional Medical Center.
Andrew Newell, 22, died at the hospital. His father remains in critical condition.
Family members said the Newells were returning from a Thanksgiving trip to South Carolina and were only a quarter-mile from home.
Authorities said Monday that Juarez Reyes was caught in the country by Border Patrol agents in 2002 and was sent back to Mexico. They aren’t sure when he re-entered the United States.
Police say he was speeding and drunk when the crash happened.
Juarez Reyes is charged with driving while impaired, driving without a license and three counts of felonious assault with a deadly weapon causing serious injury by vehicle.
He is being held under $75,000 bond and has asked for a court-appointed attorney. He’ll be back in court Jan. 14.
Related To Story
Illegal Immigrant Accused Of Driving Drunk, Causing Fatal Boone Crash
POSTED: 5:30 pm EST November 26, 2007
BOONE, N.C. -- An illegal immigrant is accused of driving drunk in Boone over the Thanksgiving holiday and plowing into a sport utility vehicle, killing a man inside.
Boone police said Juan Manuel Juarez Reyes slammed into the rear of a Lexus SUV that was about to turn from Highway 105 onto Poplar Hill Drive shortly before 11 p.m. Friday. The SUV was skidded 250 feet, hitting a Watauga County deputy’s patrol car. The occupants of the SUV were trapped inside their vehicle but the deputy was not hurt.
The driver, Sallie Ellis Newell, and passenger Jacqueline Elizabeth Newell were taken to the Watauga County Medical Center where they were treated in released. But Brian Alan Newell and Andrew Russell Newell, who was in the back passenger-side seat, were flown to Johnson City Regional Medical Center.
Andrew Newell, 22, died at the hospital. His father remains in critical condition.
Family members said the Newells were returning from a Thanksgiving trip to South Carolina and were only a quarter-mile from home.
Authorities said Monday that Juarez Reyes was caught in the country by Border Patrol agents in 2002 and was sent back to Mexico. They aren’t sure when he re-entered the United States.
Police say he was speeding and drunk when the crash happened.
Juarez Reyes is charged with driving while impaired, driving without a license and three counts of felonious assault with a deadly weapon causing serious injury by vehicle.
He is being held under $75,000 bond and has asked for a court-appointed attorney. He’ll be back in court Jan. 14.
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