HOUSTON (AP) — A Texas prosecutor says a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent appeared to use a vehicle to intentionally strike a man who took off running in Houston and that an investigation opened by his office could result in criminal charges.
Miguel Parra Hernandez, 48, needed surgery for a broken leg after being hit by a car Saturday, said Cesar Espinosa, executive director of FIEL Houston, an immigrant rights organization that is helping
the man's family.
The encounter has set off new criticism over immigration enforcement in Houston, where local prosecutors have also investigated a July fatal shooting by a federal immigration officer.
Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare, a Democrat, expressed concern over surveillance footage that shows Parra Hernandez and another person jumping out of a white truck and running as a dark SUV pursues them. A vehicle strikes Parra Hernandez, who is seen on the ground seconds later.
“In a case like this, the most obvious criminal charge is aggravated assault with a deadly weapon,” Teare told FOX 26 Houston. “Meaning the car was used as a deadly weapon. And it certainly is what appears to have happened based on the surveillance footage.”
Tim Oberle, a spokesperson for ICE in Houston, said in a statement sent to The Texas Tribune on Saturday that “As ICE officers attempted to apprehend the illegal aliens, Miguel Parra-Hernandez ran in front of an ICE vehicle and was struck.”
Spokespersons for the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Tuesday.
Parra Hernandez has been in the U.S. for 34 years and was on his way to work when the encounter began, according to Espinosa. Espinosa declined to share Parra Hernandez’s status.
He said he saw two ICE agents in Parra Hernandez's room while visiting him at the hospital.
“He already had a surgery for the injury under his knee and now we’re waiting for swelling to go down in his ankle to be able to have a reconstructive surgery on his ankle,” Espinosa said.
Teare said ICE and DHS have not cooperated with his office during its investigation.
In July, Teare said DHS also ignored his request for information after an ICE officer fatally shot 52-year-old Lorenzo Salgado Araujo. The shooting was one of at least 10 deaths involving encounters with immigration officers since the start of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign.
