U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deported Hilda Esperanza Lopez-Hernandez on April 12 after she completed a four-year prison sentence for her involvement in a fatal hit-and-run accident in Okaloosa County, Florida.
The case highlights ongoing concerns about public safety and immigration enforcement, as Lopez-Hernandez had previously been ordered removed from the United States but remained in the country. ICE officials said her actions following the crash further complicated the situation.
According to ICE, Lopez-Hernandez was driving without a license when she collided with another vehicle operated by David Hayes, age 63, in 2021. After leaving the scene of the accident, she called her boyfriend and switched vehicles to avoid detection. Neither reported the incident to police; Hayes was later found dead at the scene. In January 2023, Lopez-Hernandez was convicted of hit-and-run, operating a motor vehicle without a license, and hiding evidence.
Lopez-Hernandez originally entered the United States with her mother and another child in 2014. They were apprehended by Border Patrol en route to Fort Walton Beach but released under an order to appear at an immigration hearing during the Obama administration. She failed to attend her scheduled court date on May 10, 2018; as a result, an immigration judge ordered her removal from the country.
ICE Director Todd M. Lyons said: “Hilda Esperanza Lopez-Hernandez entered the country as a teenager, but she was an adult when she fled the scene of an accident without bothering to check on the other driver… Not only did she choose to remain in the U.S. illegally, drive without a license and leave the scene of an accident — she was prepared to let her boyfriend take the blame.”
Officials encourage those interested in learning more about detainers or ICE’s public safety mission to visit their official website or social media channels.
