Grand Rapids Mayor David LaGrand denounced federal immigration officials involved in the death of an undocumented immigrant on Sept. 20 for creating a culture of fear across the country and called for reforms of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.
LaGrand's statement on Thursday, Sept. 25, comes after the death of Mario David Coronado Juarez, an undocumented Guatemalan immigrant, who was killed when he crashedhis car in Grand Rapids over the weekend after fleeing ICE agents.
"While we don't know what Mario was thinking and feeling. We know that his death happened in the context of a national effort to create fear among our immigrant neighbors," LaGrand said. "The elevated activities of ICE across our country have been central
to this increased fear."
Since Coronado Juarez's death, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has directed the Michigan State Police to conduct a review of the incident, according to spokesperson Kaylie Hanson.
The Grand Rapids Police Department said Coronado Juarez was driving southwest near Century Avenue and McKendrick Street at about 7:10 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 20, when his vehicle crashed into a tree and caught fire. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that federal agents attempted to stop Coronado Juarez's vehicle to determine who was driving, but he sped away. DHS claims the man was driving at more than 100 mph as he fled.
DHS said agents weren't chasing Coronado Juárez at the time of the crash, according to a statement, and had originally sought to detain a different person.
LaGrand called on the federal government to take steps to include body-worn cameras and civilian oversight, among other things.
"Mario was a member of our Grand Rapids community, but he was also the breadwinner for his family back in Guatemala, who will have to mourn him from afar. We mourn with them. His life deserves to be remembered with dignity, and his family deserves compassion, answers, and justice," LaGrand said.
USA Today contributed.
Jalen Williams is a trending reporter at the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at jawilliams1@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Grand Rapids mayor calls for ICE reforms. What he's saying
