Just days after Speaker Paul Ryan said he did not want to ‘clog jails’ with previously deported drunk driving illegal aliens, 14 year-old Gianna Bartolucci, died Saturday from brain injuries caused by a twice deported drunk driving illegal alien in a head-on crash last Christmas Eve in Clarkson, New York, according to a statement by her parents posted to their church website.
…”Point three: what we have to figure out is how do we write Kate’s Law so that we’re not clogging up our jails so much for, say, DUI, but for the true violent criminals? … We need to get the details right so that we actually are going after the people that are doing this. … Trust me, you know we’re frustrated about this.”
Speaker Paul Ryan on The O’Reilly Factor, June 15, 2016, transcript via Breitbart (“Kate’s Law—named in honor of Kate Steinle—would increase the penalty for illegal immigrants who return to the U.S. after being deported.”.
Bartolucci was riding with her father, Pastor Tony Bartolucci, to buy a Christmas tree around 6:00 p.m. when a car driven by Efrain Lopez-Contreras crossed over and collided head on with the Bartolucci’s vehicle.
The father and daughter were seriously injured and were rescued by good Samaritans. Lopez-Contreras walked away from the crash but was found by deputies hiding in a ditch after the rescuers tried to prevent him from leaving.
Gianna Bartolucci died from complications following surgery to replace part of her skull last week. Her father was released from the hospital on Feb 2 whilst Gianna was transferred to a brain injury rehabilitation unit that same month.
Lopez-Contreras is being held on bond by local authorities. ICE has placed a detainer on him in case he makes bail according to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.
Lopez-Contreras, who is in this country illegally, was originally charged with first-degree vehicular assault and driving while intoxicated. He was remanded to Monroe County Jail in lieu of $100,000 cash bail or $200,000 bond. He is still being held there.