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Venezuelan national charged with intoxicated manslaughter after crash kills Texas girl


Joel Enrique Gonzalez Chacin{ }(CNN Newsource)
Joel Enrique Gonzalez Chacin(CNN Newsource)
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The suspected drunk driver involved in the Sunday collision which killed a 7-year-old Texas girl is a Venezuelan national, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) official told The National News Desk (TNND) Thursday.

41-year-old Joel Enrique Gonzalez Chacin of Venezuela was arrested Sunday and charged with felony intoxicated manslaughter with a vehicle. He is accused of colliding with another vehicle at an intersection in the Houston, Texas area around 2:30 a.m., injuring the woman driving the other car and killing a 7-year-old female passenger.

Instead of helping, the driver took photographs before driving away from the scene, according to authorities. A judge set Chacin's bond at $150,000, claiming such a high number is necessary given the seriousness of the offense.

ICE said Thursday it filed an immigration detainer request with the Harris County Jail. Such a request asks local authorities to hold a suspect past their release date as ICE weighs deportation proceedings against them.

The Harris County Jail did not immediately respond to a request for comment from TNND seeking confirmation as to whether it will honor the detainer request.

The arrest comes as several Democratic leaders are speaking out against President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed mass deportation plans. Trump’s incoming border czar Tom Homan, a former acting director of ICE, has led the charge since being named to root out illegal immigrants in sanctuary cities throughout the country.

Some Democratic leaders, such as Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., are now speaking out against such an approach, saying it could prove harmful to those working toward legal citizenship. Sen. Cortez Masto took to X Tuesday to demand President Joe Biden use his “power” to protect immigrant families ahead of Trump’s return to the Oval Office.

READ MORE | Boston City Council upholds sanctuary city status ahead of Trump inauguration

“I remember the calls I would get in my office during the first Trump administration from families that were under threat because of the immigration chaos he created,” she wrote. “President Biden has the power to protect immigrant families, and I'm calling on him to use it.”

Democratic New York City Mayor Eric Adams said this week he would “love to” sit down for a meeting with Homan. The mayor acknowledged during a press conference that the move may be unpopular with some, but explained he is willing to meet with anyone committed to making "their communities safer."

“Cancel me,” Mayor Adams dared his supporters.

Follow Jackson Walker on X at @_jlwalker_ for the latest trending national news. Have a news tip? Send it to jacwalker@sbgtv.com.

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