Texas prosecutor weighs assault charge against ICE officer after vehicle strike

A Texas prosecutor is considering a felony assault charge against an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer whose vehicle struck a man fleeing an immigration stop in Houston, saying investigators’ video appears to show the officer deliberately steering into him. ICE denies the collision was intentional.

Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare said footage gathered after Saturday’s incident supports a possible charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. “It’s pretty obvious that this was an intentional striking and running over of the person by the vehicle,” he told NBC News. According to The Guardian, a conviction on that charge could carry a prison sentence of up to 20 years.

The man struck, Miguel Parra-Hernandez, 48, remained under ICE supervision at a Houston hospital on Wednesday with serious hip and leg injuries, The Guardian reported. His representatives said he had undergone surgery on one leg and would need additional operations.

Video obtained by NBC’s Houston affiliate KPRC shows an unmarked vehicle crossing a median and appearing to turn toward Parra-Hernandez as he runs. Teare said investigators have collected additional footage beyond what has been broadcast. ICE offered a different account over the weekend, saying Parra-Hernandez ran in front of a vehicle as officers pursued fleeing men.

On Tuesday, an ICE spokesperson called allegations of an intentional strike “RECKLESS and FALSE,” describing them as “disgusting smears” against its officers. The agency said such allegations had contributed to increases of more than 1,600% in assaults and 3,300% in vehicle attacks against its officers, but provided no supporting data, according to NBC News.

Teare said ICE has not cooperated with an investigation by his office and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office. Investigators wanted to preserve and examine data from the vehicle, which Teare identified as a Jeep Cherokee, to determine whether it recorded its speed, steering or braking. He said ICE refused a request to download the information, and the officer drove the vehicle away while prosecutors were drafting a search warrant. Teare said driving it could have erased relevant data. ICE did not answer NBC News’ questions about the recorder or the request.

Teare also said two people detained in an unrelated operation were in the back of the ICE vehicle during the pursuit. His office is seeking to keep them and Parra-Hernandez in the country as material witnesses. A senior Department of Homeland Security official told NBC News that multiple officers at the scene wore body cameras and that ICE was reviewing footage in an internal investigation.

ICE said Parra-Hernandez was not its target and was in the country illegally. It identified the target as Jose Mendoza-Cervantes, whom the agency described as having prior arrests and a removal order. Parra-Hernandez’s lawyer, Kim Bruno, and immigrant advocate Cesar Espinosa said he did not know Mendoza-Cervantes. They said Parra-Hernandez, who has no criminal record, was on his way to work and fled because he could not identify the occupants of vehicles that had no sirens or emergency lights activated.

Teare’s office has asked witnesses to submit photos or video through a portal that does not ask about citizenship or immigration status.