Deported Four Times—Still Here—Child Dead

A long border wall stretches across a desert landscape with mountains in the background

A man deported four times previously was arrested for killing an 11-year-old boy in a hit-and-run, exposing catastrophic failures in border security and sanctuary policies that endanger American families.

Quick Take

An 11-year-old California boy died after being struck by a vehicle driven by a previously deported immigrant with four prior removals from the U.S.
Federal immigration officials blame California’s sanctuary policies for allowing the suspect to remain in the country and commit this tragedy.
The incident highlights a dangerous gap between federal deportation orders and state-level policies that limit cooperation with immigration enforcement.
Governor Newsom’s office deflected responsibility by blaming federal border security failures while defending California’s sanctuary framework.

A Child’s Life Lost to Policy Failure

Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz, just 11 years old, was retrieving a soccer ball from a street in Escondido, California, when a vehicle struck him. The driver fled without rendering aid. The boy was rushed to the hospital but succumbed to his injuries. Escondido Police arrested Hector Balderas Amador on Saturday, November 29, 2025, on felony hit-and-run charges. What makes this tragedy uniquely infuriating for law-abiding Americans: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement revealed the suspect had been deported four separate times before this incident.

Four Deportations, Yet Still Here

The suspect’s immigration history represents a catastrophic failure of federal enforcement and state cooperation. Each prior deportation should have permanently barred this individual from the country. Yet he repeatedly unlawfully re-entered the United States. The specific dates and circumstances of these removals remain unclear, but the pattern is unmistakable: our system cannot prevent previously deported criminals from returning. This is not an isolated case—it reflects systemic breakdown in border security and deportation enforcement that puts American lives at risk.

Sanctuary Policies Under Fire

The incident occurred in California, a state with sanctuary policies limiting local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin of the Department of Homeland Security issued a statement directly blaming these policies: “Thanksgiving should be a day of celebrating family and giving gratitude, but instead the family of Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz mourned this beautiful child’s death because a criminal illegal alien stole his life. Now, sanctuary laws threaten to put this killer back onto California’s streets.” This reflects the real-world consequences of policies prioritizing illegal immigrants over American citizens’ safety.

Democrats will get you killed.

Previously deported illegal immigrant accused of killing 11-year-old in hit-and-run https://t.co/0W9Wi8odP6

— The Spirited American (@TheSpiritedAme1) December 3, 2025

State Leadership Deflects Responsibility

Governor Newsom’s office responded defensively, attempting to distinguish between sanctuary protections and federal criminal enforcement. The statement claimed California law does not prevent federal authorities from pursuing criminal cases, while implicitly criticizing federal border security: “The federal government admits a failure to apprehend the suspect when he unlawfully entered the U.S.” This response exemplifies how state leadership deflects accountability. While federal border security certainly bears responsibility, California’s sanctuary framework actively obstructs cooperation that could prevent such tragedies.

A Pattern of Preventable Deaths

This case is not unique. In Lakewood, New Jersey, an undocumented immigrant named Raul Luna-Perez with a documented DUI rap sheet was charged with vehicular homicide after a July 2025 crash killed a mother and her 11-year-old daughter. Luna-Perez had been arrested twice on DUI charges in March and April 2025, and for domestic violence in June 2023, yet remained in the community. These parallel incidents demonstrate a systemic pattern: undocumented immigrants with criminal histories are repeatedly allowed to remain in American communities, where they commit preventable violent crimes against innocent Americans.

Conservative Americans understand what’s at stake: sanctuary policies prioritize political ideology over public safety. When a man deported four times can return and kill a child, our immigration system has failed its most fundamental duty—protecting American lives. The Torres De Paz family’s grief is immeasurable, but it should catalyze serious reform. Federal and state authorities must coordinate effectively to prevent previously deported criminals from re-entering the country. Anything less betrays the memory of Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz and endangers every American family.