A grand jury indicted Mario Alberto Morales, an Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent who allegedly ran over Houston immigrant Miguel Parra-Hernandez, Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare, alongside Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, announced on Friday.
Morales was indicted for the second-degree felony offense of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. On Oct. 10, the agent allegedly struck Parra-Hernandez with his vehicle, breaking his leg and ankle. An ICE spokesperson claimed Parra-Hernandez ran in front of the agent's vehicle while they were trying to arrest a different man and said he was fleeing the scene after an attempted traffic stop. Immigrants rights advocacy groups and Parra-Hernandez's attorney have disputed ICE's account.
Surveillance video of the incident appeared to show the agent driving towards Parra-Hernandez as he ran away from the car and into a parking lot.
"An ICE badge does not give you a free reign to injure, kill, or violate the constitutional rights of anyone," Teare said. "My hope is this prosecution will do more than just seek justice for the Parra-Hernandez family and Mr. Parra-Hernandez. I hope it also sends a loud and clear message to every ICE officer who feels they have a free pass to terrorize our streets."
The agent has not yet been taken into custody. Teare said his office has been in touch with Morales’ lawyer, but it was unclear if he was still in the Houston area.
In a statement toHouston Public Media, a spokesperson with ICE called the indictment a "political stunt by Houston sanctuary politicians," and asserted "federal officers acting in the course of their duties can only be investigated by other federal agencies."
Teare said it is "patently false" that his office can not investigate.
Houston Public Media'sattempts to reach Morales were unsuccessful.
The indictment came just 20 days after the incident. The DA's office is also investigating the shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by an ICE agent in early July. In an appearance on Hello Houston, Teare said his office was at a "tipping point" in the investigation and getting ready to bring charges to a grand jury.
Teare said while the cases share some similarities, there are differences that allowed his office to move faster with the Parra Hernandez investigation.
"I think one of the things that is unquestionably different, and I think in large part to the advocacy of the Salgado sons and the public outcry around that case, is people were wearing body cameras," Teare said.
At the press conference Teare played portions of the 911 call from the Parra-Hernandez incident. Morales can be heard on the call saying Parra-Hernandez is "fine" and that he was trying to get around him.
Indictments of federal law enforcement officers are rare and have resulted in legal disputes in the past. Minnesota prosecutors indicted an ICE agent from Texas in connection with shooting a Venezuelan man, which resulted in a legal dispute between Minnesota and Texas for his extradition. Trump Administration officials have argued that federal officers have a level of immunity from prosecution.
This is a developing story.
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