Whitmer directs MSP to investigate fatal crash following ICE pursuit in Grand Rapids

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has directed the Michigan State Police to investigate the circumstances surrounding a car crash in Grand Rapids that killed a man. The Grand Rapids Police Department and local activists both say the crash occurred while the driver was fleeing a traffic stop involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

The victim was Mario David Coronado Juárez, according to U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-Grand Rapids) and local activists with Movimiento Cosecha GR. At a press conference on Tuesday evening, Gema Lowe, an activist with Movimiento Cosecha, said that Coronado Juárez was a father of three children and in his mid-30s.

ICE’s role in the crash led Grand Rapids Police Chief Joe Trigg to request that state police assist with the investigation, because local police are more limited in their ability to obtain information from federal agents.

“Given the circumstances of this incident, the Governor has directed the Michigan State Police to conduct an independent review of the law enforcement actions surrounding this situation in coordination with the Grand Rapids Police Department’s investigation,” the governor’s chief communications officer Kaylie Hanson said in a statement. 

A spokesperson for the governor did not answer specific questions regarding the abilities of state police to investigate the actions of federal agents in ways that local police cannot and about the powers of state police to hold federal agents accountable, depending on the outcome of the investigation.

The crash occurred around 7:10 a.m. Sunday near Century Avenue SW and McKendrick Street, which police say turned fatal when Coronado Juárez, the driver of the car, hit a tree as he was fleeing ICE agents and his car caught fire.

Activists at the press conference called his death part of “a massive, ongoing escalation in ICE violence across Grand Rapids, the region, and the country,” and blamed the immigration agents’ actions for the car crash that killed Coronado Juárez.

“ICE agents, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents, were chasing him and he was terrified,” Lauren Coman, a local organizer with GR Rapid Response to ICE and No Detention Centers in Michigan, said. “It was evident from the moment the footage was shown that the same vehicles we at GR Rapid Response to ICE see kidnapping our neighbors all over Grand Rapids and parking at 517 Ottawa were at the scene: a white Dodge Durango, a charcoal Dodge Durango, and a compact sedan. ICE was in fact called in this accident, and the reason that Mario is no longer with us.”

Local organizers and members of the Guatemalan community at the press conference emphasized the tragedy of Coronado Juárez’s death.

“He was focused on working, providing for his family, and saving enough money to begin building a home for them in Guatemala,” Lowe said of Coronado Juárez. “Mario was a devoted family member who dreamed of creating a better future for his children, just like anyone, just like us and any of you. He was described for those who knew him as humble, hardworking, and deeply committed to his family.”

Lowe added that Coronado Juárez’s family wants his remains to be sent home to Guatemala. The group is hosting a vigil on Thursday evening with his family members to demand justice for his death and to help reunite his remains with his family.

Activists allege Grand Rapids police are working with ICE despite city policy 

“His family is asking for justice. They want his remains and they want justice,” Karla Barbari, a member of the Guatemalan community in Grand Rapids, said tearfully. “It needs to stop. How many more are going to die? How many more do we have to send home? This needs to stop. We are asking for justice today.” 

Scholten, whose district includes Grand Rapids, sent a letter on Tuesday to David Venturella, the acting director of ICE, asking for further information on the circumstances surrounding the crash, including the stated reason for the pursuit and whether there was a preexisting warrant, order of removal or ongoing investigation into the subject of the vehicle chase. 

She also asked for details on whether or not the pursuit was classified as high-risk, an ICE practice that has drawn criticism from elected officials around the state for endangering both those involved and the surrounding community. 

Scholten further requested that ICE “make relevant footage and records available to this office, local law enforcement, and the family of the deceased,” and asked the agency to confirm that all body-worn camera footage, dashcam footage and incident reports are retained. 

“No traffic stop should end with a fatality. Something went wrong, and we need to know what and how. I have sent a letter to Immigration and Customs Enforcement demanding immediate answers about what happened and a transparent investigation into facts we don’t yet know, so that we can prevent something like this from ever happening again,” Scholten said in a press release. “The purpose of federal law enforcement is to make our communities safer. We must make sure that is happening. I will continue to monitor this situation closely and remain in close contact with federal and local law enforcement until our community gets the answers we deserve.”

Scholten faced criticism in recent months from some local elected officials and community leaders, who published a statement in mid-August saying that Scholten’s stance in opposition to the abolition of ICE was harmful to the West Michigan community. 

“Coalitions of immigrants, their families, friends and the networks they are embedded in throughout the community are antagonized by the continued propping up of ICE,” the statement read. “We hope this is an opportunity for the Congresswoman to be a unifier and firmly reject the notion that ICE has made our communities safer in any capacity, or that it was ever meant to be.”

Scholten responded with a statement of her own, saying that she understands the concerns of constituents about “increasingly aggressive” immigration enforcement and the need for accountability, but that she continues to believe that abolishing ICE as an agency is not the answer to those concerns.