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ICE Detains Oregon Crash Suspect After Local Release in Sanctuary Dispute

The case now tests how immigration custody can disrupt a state homicide trial.

Overview

  • Rajinder Kumar, whom ICE arrested Wednesday, April 22, is now held at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma during deportation proceedings.
  • Kumar left Deschutes County Jail on April 2 after posting $25,000 on a $250,000 bond despite an ICE detainer, which is a request that jails hold or alert federal agents before release.
  • Prosecutors say Kumar jackknifed a semi on U.S. Highway 20 on Nov. 24, 2025, blocking both lanes before a Subaru struck the trailer and killed newlyweds William Micah Carter and Jennifer Lynn Lower, who had been married 16 days.
  • He has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and reckless endangerment, and a state trial is set for January 2027, which his lawyer says should proceed with him on bail and under the presumption of innocence.
  • DHS leaders fault California for granting him a commercial driver’s license and accuse Oregon officials of not honoring detainers, underscoring that detainers are requests rather than court orders and that some states limit cooperation with ICE.