Jackson Township is at the center of a sharp fight over sanctuary-style policy after a 9-month-old boy was killed in a grocery store parking lot crash involving an illegal immigrant. Mayor Jennifer Kuhn says the state needs to loosen its restrictions so local police can alert federal immigration authorities when they encounter someone who is undocumented. The case has turned a tragic crash into a broader argument over accountability, public safety, and how much authority local police should have.
Kuhn did not soften her language when talking about the policy gap. She said police should not be stuck on the sidelines when they pull someone over and learn that person is undocumented, adding that “That needs to change.” Her point was simple and blunt: condolences are not enough when a family has been shattered and elected leaders still have not moved to fix the rules.
Authorities say the crash happened on Aug. 28 outside a kosher grocery store in Jackson. According to investigators, Maria Cobon-Guzman, a Guatemalan national without a driver’s license, struck a mother pushing a stroller with her 9-month-old son and 5-year-old daughter. The infant died, while the mother and little girl were critically injured, leaving the community stunned and the mayor demanding action.
That anger is aimed squarely at New Jersey’s Immigrant Trust Directive, the policy Kuhn says ties the hands of local law enforcement. Under the directive, officers generally cannot ask about immigration status, notify ICE when someone is being released, or share certain non-public information for civil immigration enforcement. Kuhn argues that setup puts politics ahead of common sense and makes it harder to stop dangerous situations before they turn deadly.
The legal fallout has widened beyond the driver. Cobon-Guzman, 20, was charged with manslaughter, and prosecutors also charged Ariadna Lazaro-Flores, saying she let Cobon-Guzman drive her vehicle even though she knew Cobon-Guzman did not have a license. Lazaro-Flores, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, was also charged with endangering the welfare of an incompetent person, according to an inmate report.
Federal officials say both women had already crossed the border illegally during the Biden administration. DHS previously said Lazaro-Flores entered five times in October 2023 and was removed each time, while Cobon-Guzman entered once in October 2023 and was later released into the country’s interior. An immigration judge issued a removal order against Cobon-Guzman on July 31, adding another layer to an already grim case.
The politics around the crash are just as heated as the criminal case. Kuhn wants the Jackson Township Council to pass a resolution calling for state-level changes, and she says other towns are likely feeling the same pressure. For her, this is not about slogans or talking points, but about whether police can act before another family pays the price.
Supporters of the directive see it differently. They argue that limiting local cooperation with immigration authorities helps build trust with immigrant communities, making victims and witnesses more willing to come forward without fearing that a routine police encounter will turn into an immigration check. That is the basic tradeoff at the heart of the fight, and New Jersey has doubled down on the trust-first model.
State officials have stood behind the policy. Dan Prochilo of the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office said county jails and state prisons can still notify ICE when someone is being released after certain violent or serious offenses, including assault, stalking, criminal sexual contact, arson, and burglary. He also said New Jersey facilities may notify ICE if a suspect has a felony conviction from the past five years or is under a final deportation order from a federal judge.
Gov. Mikie Sherrill has also backed the same direction, signing legislation to codify the directive and issuing an order limiting ICE from using nonpublic state property unless agents have a judicial warrant. That has only deepened the divide between state leaders and local officials who say the rules are too rigid. In Jackson, the debate is no longer abstract, and the pressure to change the law is only getting louder.
1 Comment
The mayor seems not to understand that democrats value illegal aliens far more than citizens. Citizens vote against them sometimes, illegals will not, due to fear of getting deported.