(FOX40.COM) — Florida Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins landed at the Stockton Metropolitan Airport Thursday morning to personally escort a local truck driver back to Florida to face charges in a deadly crash.
Singh, 28, was charged this week with three counts of vehicular homicide in a San Joaquin County courtroom. Authorities said he made an illegal U-turn on a Florida highway on Aug. 12, causing a crash that killed three people.
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“Three lives were lost because he got a license when he shouldn’t have. Those people died and then he fled back to California,” said Collins. “We’re going to make sure this thug is brought to justice and faces it in Florida.”
San Joaquin County District Attorney Ron Freitas explained that Florida’s governor issued a warrant, which gave California officials the authority to hold Singh until Florida retrieved him.
But the case has become part of a larger political debate over immigration and California’s policies. California is one of 19 states that issue driver’s licenses regardless of immigration status. Collins pointed at Singh’s English skills as evidence that he should not be driving.
“When he was pulled off the side of the road, he answered three of sixteen questions properly. Why was he driving in the first place?” said Collins. “He didn’t have basic English proficiency; he didn’t know the road signs.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom’s press office pushed back, writing in a statement that Singh entered the U.S. in 2018 and later received a federal work authorization under the Trump administration. The statement also accused Florida of letting a suspect walk free: “Florida let a murder suspect walk. California Police had to come arrest him, and now Florida’s LG is staging a photo op to pick him up.”
Collins dismissed the criticism, calling it “hogwash.”
California Assemblymember Rhodesia Ransom, who represents San Joaquin County, also weighed in.
“It’s not necessary for the Lt. Governor to personally come. They have staff for that,” said Ransom. “There is a performative angle to this, but ultimately this is about justice, and they have the right to come pick up the person.”
San Joaquin County officials emphasized that their focus is on the legal process and supporting the victims’ families.
“We are working very hard to make sure that this happens smoothly and that we can get closure and justice for them,” said Freitas.
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