Driver accused of killing WSP trooper in I-5 crash is Mexican citizen ‘unlawfully’ in US
NYP, by KOMO News StaffTue, March 5th 2024
A 32-year-old man accused of causing a deadly three-vehicle crash on I-5 in Marysville appears in court on Monday, March 4, 2024. Washington State Patrol Trooper Christopher Gadd was killed in the crash. KOMO News is not naming the suspect or showing his face because he has not been formally charged. (KOMO News)
SEATTLE — The man accused of hitting and killing a Washington State Patrol (WSP) trooper on I-5 in Marysville early Saturday morning is a citizen of Mexico living in the United States “unlawfully,” according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The 32-year-old man, with a Lynnwood address, is being held on charges related to vehicular homicide. He “entered the U.S. at an unknown date and time, without admission or parole by an immigration officer, and was first encountered by (Enforcement and Removal Operations) Seattle Oct. 28, 2013, at the South Correctional Entity, Burien, WA, following his arrest for failure to appear for driving while license suspended,” ICE said.
KOMO News is not naming the man because he has not been formally charged for the trooper’s death. ICE provided the following dates and courts of criminal conviction:
May 3, 2013: Lynnwood Municipal Court, driving while license suspended or revoked, $750 fine
May 16, 2013: Lynnwood Municipal Court, marijuana possession of 40 grams or less, sentenced to 90 days incarceration with 87 days suspended
Oct. 6, 2014: SeaTac Municipal Court, driving while license suspended or revoked, sentenced to 90 days incarceration with 85 days suspended
May 24, 2019: King County Superior Court, domestic violence assault, no sentencing information available
WSP Trooper Christopher Gadd, 27, was killed while in the line of duty shortly before 3 a.m. Saturday. He was on patrol on the 13600 block of southbound I-5, parked in the grass on the right-side shoulder of the freeway when the collision happened, officials said. A witness driving a semi-truck said Gadd’s vehicle was “fully marked” with the lights off, the document said, when a speeding black SUV “swerved and struck the rear end” of the patrol vehicle.
snip
Denver’s migrant crisis threatens to overwhelm its compassion
By Trevor Hughes, Lauren Villagran, USA TODAY, March, 2024
DENVER — No more flowers in the medians. Cuts to rec center hours and at the DMV. A hiring freeze in some city departments. After more than 40,000 migrants arrived Denver in less than a year, city officials are now struggling to help both the new arrivals and serve their taxpaying residents amidst skyrocketing rents and an ongoing housing shortage.
A self-described sanctuary city, Denver has found shelter for the migrants, helped their kids get into schools, provided emergency food assistance and taught them how to fill out paperwork.
It’s a vast, expensive effort in a city unaccustomed to managing such challenges.
And now cracks are beginning to show in the city’s generosity. Denver has already spent more than $60 million aiding the migrants, and officials are planning budget cuts to keep the aid flowing. A hastily built coalition of churches and nonprofits has stepped in to help, but several surrounding cities have refused to assist or accept migrants.
“We overextended a while ago,” said Ismael de Sousa, a longtime Denver bakery owner who grew up in Venezuela and has struggled with whether to open his own home to newcomers. “It’s tricky because you don’t know who you’re opening your door to for an indefinite amount of time.”
snip.
Johnston has called for other mayors to help Denver by accepting migrants, but many have outright refused or just ignored his calls. Other cities have simply handed out bus tickets and sent migrants elsewhere.
snip