TOP STORIES
Monday November 21 2005

11:47 pm x51

Johnson & Whales University
Immigrant charged in fatal wreck
Updated: 11/19/2005 11:32 AM
By: Brittany Morehouse, News 14 Carolina

Authorities are still trying to find out whether Jorge Hernandez has a prior record.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Authorities say a suspected illegal immigrant was intoxicated Friday morning when his vehicle slammed into two others on Interstate 485.

Jorge Hernandez, 35, is accused of driving more than 100 mph on the wrong side of the highway. His Ford Expedition collided head on with another vehicle, police said.

“The crash last night was a severe impact,” said Trooper Brian Huffstickler of the North Carolina Highway Patrol. “It was probably one of the worst crashes we’ve ever seen.”

The head-on collision was devastating.
The driver of the other vehicle, 18-year-old Min Soon Chang, was killed. Hernandez was injured, as was Tasha Beth Thomas, who was driving a vehicle that the Expedition sideswiped after the head-on collision.

Hernandez is charged with driving while impaired, and other charges are pending. Authorities are still trying to find out whether he has a prior record.

“Whenever you’re here illegally, it’s very hard for us to maintain contact with the person after they’re charged,” Huffstickler said.

Min Soon Chang, 18, was a freshman at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
“My family is just destroyed right now,” said Amos Chang, Min’s brother. “They’re just sad, depressed. They were in denial, but they can start to accept that my brother has passed on.”

Amos Chang said his own anger was intensified because Hernandez walked away from the crash that his brother could not.

Elizabeth Cho, a family friend, said Min was a caring person.

The aftermath was caught on tape.
“I kind of saw him grow up. He always looked out for other people and showed concern for other people,” Cho said. “My husband and I were just saying how sad it is to lose such a nice, young kid because he can do so many things in our future in this world.”

U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick, R-N.C., is working on legislation that would strengthen penalties against illegal immigrants who are convicted of DWI. She became vocal about the issue when Scott Gardner, a Gaston County teacher, was killed in July by an illegal immigrant who was driving drunk.

On Friday, she commented on “another bright young life lost.”

“I hope that this — as far as our committees are concerned — will make a difference,” Myrick said. “This is just another example of why we need the legislation.”

Police said that Hernandez was driving for almost 20 miles on the wrong side of I-485.