A lethal crash on Florida’s Turnpike that killed three folks has spiraled right into a high-stakes political combat between Homeland Safety Secretary Kristi Noem and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, with either side blaming the opposite over how the driving force — a migrant who entered the U.S. illegally — was allowed behind the wheel of a industrial truck.
Authorities say 28-year-old Harjinder Singh of Stockton, California, tried an unlawful U-turn along with his tractor-trailer close to Fort Pierce on Aug. 12, inflicting a Chrysler City & Nation minivan to slam into the large rig.
The automobile turned wedged beneath, killing the 30-year-old driver from Florida Metropolis, a 37-year-old girl from Pompano Seashore, and a 54-year-old man from Miami. Two passengers died on the scene; the driving force died later at a hospital. Each Singh and his passenger, a 25-year-old man from Yuba Metropolis, California, have been unhurt.
Information of Singh’s immigration standing and licensing historical past prompted fast condemnation from Noem and her workers.
“3 harmless folks have been killed in Florida as a result of Gavin Newsom’s California DMV issued an unlawful alien a Business Driver’s License,” Noem posted on X. “This intestine wrenching tragedy ought to have by no means occurred.”
However Newsom’s press workplace shortly identified that the timeline undercut Noem’s claims, saying Singh entered the nation and obtained federal work authorization throughout Trump’s first time period.
“Hey, genius: the federal authorities (TRUMP ADMIN) already confirmed that this man meets federal and state immigration necessities — YOU issued him a piece allow (EAD). As ordinary, the Trump Administration is both mendacity or clueless.”
The account even turned to Grok, X’s AI chatbot, asking who the president was in 2018. The reply: Donald Trump.
Noem’s spokeswoman, Tricia McLaughlin, went out of her technique to politicize the difficulty.
“3 harmless folks have been killed in Florida as a result of Gavin Newsom’s California DMV issued an unlawful alien a Business Driver’s License—this state of governance is asinine. What number of extra harmless folks must die earlier than @GavinNewsom stops taking part in video games with the security of the American public?”
The White Home joined the refrain, with spokeswoman Abigail Jackson declaring: “Unlawful aliens that haven’t any authorized proper to be in our nation actually shouldn’t be granted industrial drivers licenses. Gavin Newscum’s pro-illegal alien insurance policies have lethal penalties. But he continues to double down and put illegals over Americans.”
The sudden pile-on from Trump’s camp comes as Newsom’s press workplace has taken to allotting Trump-style jabs on social media, not too long ago focusing on the president over Republican redistricting in Texas. After Newsom trolled him, Trump has supposedly stopped posting in all caps.
In the meantime, Singh stays in custody in California, the place he was arrested on a Florida warrant. He faces as much as 15 years in jail on every vehicular murder cost. Immigration authorities have lodged a detainer to deport him after state proceedings conclude. His subsequent courtroom listening to is scheduled for Tuesday.
The crash and ensuing political feud have raised recent questions on state licensing guidelines for undocumented immigrants, federal vetting of labor permits, and oversight of economic driver {qualifications}.
Dan Horvath, chief working officer of the American Trucking Associations, stated: “This can be a horrific tragedy that ought to by no means have occurred. Preliminary experiences … solely elevate extra questions on how and why he was capable of acquire a industrial driver’s license within the first place—questions that the state of California should reply for.”
Conservative commentator Charlie Kirk went additional, writing on X: “Deport him to CECOT for all times. After which strip California of each federal greenback for so long as it takes. Rogue states should not be allowed to proceed shielding, coddling, and licensing illegals.”
California DMV officers declined to debate Singh’s license past confirming they have been reviewing the matter.
Florida Freeway Patrol known as Singh’s actions “reckless” and “with out regard for the security of others,” noting he had tried the maneuver at an “unauthorized location.” Singh was arrested by U.S. Marshals on three counts of vehicular murder and faces deportation after the case concludes. “He’ll not have the ability to injury and destroy the lives of Floridians and guests,” stated Dave Kerner, government director of the Florida Division of Freeway Security and Motor Autos (FLHSMV).
Immigration data present Singh illegally crossed the U.S.-Mexico border close to San Ysidro, California, in September 2018, throughout Donald Trump’s presidency. He was arrested, processed for expedited elimination, and later granted a “constructive credible concern” discovering by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Companies, which allowed him to stay within the nation whereas his asylum case was pending. An immigration decide later set bond at $5,000, which was posted in January 2019.
By December 2019, Singh had obtained a California industrial driver’s license. California regulation, underneath Meeting Invoice 60 (enacted in 2015), permits undocumented residents to acquire state driver’s licenses if they will show id and residency. These licenses, nevertheless, are marked “not for federal identification.” His means to safe work authorization derived from a federal Employment Authorization Doc (EAD), a allow issued by USCIS.
“This current information is a devastating tragedy made even worse by the truth that it was completely preventable,” Jackson, the White Home spokeswoman, stated. “Unlawful aliens that haven’t any authorized proper to be in our nation actually shouldn’t be granted industrial drivers licenses.”
