Authorities have identified the man accused of throwing a rock through a school bus window in Teaneck, New Jersey, critically injuring an 8-year-old girl, as an illegal alien with a criminal history who remained in the U.S. under New Jersey's sanctuary immigration policies.
New Jersey State Police said Hernando Garcia-Morales hurled a rock at a school bus around 2 p.m. on Jan. 7 while it was traveling northbound on the New Jersey Turnpike near Exit 70A-B. The rock shattered a window and struck a third-grade student, fracturing her skull, according to Teaneck Mayor Mark Schwartz.
The child was rushed to Hackensack Meridian Hospital, where she underwent emergency surgery. Doctors implanted titanium mesh plates and screws to repair severe head injuries. Her family said she is recovering.
"She's back and recovering well, and very happy to hear her attacker was apprehended," Schwartz told The New York Post.
Federal officials said Garcia-Morales had multiple prior convictions and was in the country illegally but was never deported due to New Jersey's sanctuary policies.
Garcia-Morales informed law enforcement officials that he believed the bus "was the devil or his enemy" upon being apprehended two days after the incident at a homeless encampment in Palisades Park, New Jersey.
"Violently targeting a school bus full of children is extremely wicked and heinous," said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. "Hernando Garcia-Morales should have never been in this country, let alone released after multiple arrests into New Jersey communities."
McLaughlin said Immigration and Customs Enforcement has lodged a detainer against Garcia-Morales and urged state officials to cooperate. "We hope New Jersey's sanctuary politicians will help us keep him off American streets for good," she said.
The Department of Justice is suing five New Jersey cities for blocking local police from coordinating with federal immigration authorities to deport illegal aliens.
Newark, Jersey City, Paterson, Hoboken and their leaders are accused of city policies that prosecutors claim obstruct the Trump administration's immigration detention and deportation efforts.
Family attorney Ross Rothenberg said the family expects prosecutors to pursue the strongest charges possible, calling the attack "heinous."
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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