Illegal Immigrant Causes Fatal Accident in California

A recent accident that occurred on August 12, 2025, on the Florida Turnpike near Fort Pierce has sparked intense political controversy in the United States. A truck driven by Harjinder Singh, a 35-year-old undocumented immigrant from India, made an illegal U-turn in an unauthorized area, colliding with a Chrysler Town & Country minivan. The crash resulted in three fatalities: a 37-year-old woman from Pompano Beach, a 54-year-old man from Miami, and a 30-year-old man from Florida City. Singh had entered the United States illegally in 2018 and was arrested following the accident. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles charged him with vehicular homicide and issued an immigration detainer under the 287(g) program, which allows local authorities to cooperate with ICE in enforcing immigration laws.

The White House, through its official rapid-response social media account, posted a video of the accident accompanied by a statement criticizing the state of California for issuing Singh a commercial driver’s license. The statement read: “This individual is an illegal immigrant who was granted a commercial driver’s license by the state of California, and now three innocent people have died.” A White House spokesperson added: “This is a devastating tragedy, made worse by the fact that it was entirely preventable.”

Subsequent investigations revealed that Singh obtained his commercial driver’s license in California under AB 60, a law that allows undocumented immigrants to obtain non-commercial driver’s licenses. This law does not apply to commercial licenses, meaning Singh would not have been eligible for a commercial driver’s license in California. It was also discovered that Singh was initially denied a work permit under the Trump administration but later received one in June 2021 during the Biden administration, which allowed him to obtain the commercial driver’s license.

This case has reignited the debate over U.S. immigration policies and the issuance of driver’s licenses, especially in states like California that have adopted laws permitting undocumented immigrants to obtain licenses. Meanwhile, Singh remains in custody in Florida and faces state and federal charges, as well as potential deportation following the judicial process.