Bond has been set at $1 million for Jose DeJesus Euzondo Balderas, the driver charged with DWI and involuntary manslaughter in the crash that killed two people sitting in a stranded car along I-40/85 on Sunday. Balderas’ citizenship status has been questioned not only by the judge setting bail, but by Crystal Carguas’ father:
At Balderas’ initial court appearance Monday, Guilford County District Court judge Tom Jarrell increased his bond from $60,000 to $1 million.
“We have difficulty knowing your citizenship, we have difficulty knowing your identity, we don’t know who you are, and you are a flight risk with no ties to this community,” Jarrell told Balderas at the hearing.
Jarrell also ordered Balderas to be fingerprinted and those prints run through the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Automated Fingerprint Identification System to see if he has other criminal records…..
On Monday, the Carguas’ home was filled with relatives and friends from New Jersey and North Carolina.
They gathered in the kitchen and living room and piled flowers around a table with photos of Crystal.
Her father, Manuel Cargua, was choked with grief and anger that an unlicensed driver with no identification documents could be driving and cause an accident that killed his daughter.
“They are Spanish like us, but we’re trying to do the best we can — do everything legal,” Manuel Cargua said.
Two things I can’t help but notice: Whether or not Balderas blew into the breathlyzer and (if he did) what his blood alcohol was isn’t mentioned; and the High Point Enterprise appears to be passing on this story.
