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Court weighs ICE records in fatal crash coverage dispute
The judge recommended requiring ICE to produce deportation timeline records that could explain why the insured did not report the crash to Canal Insurance.
A federal magistrate judge has recommended granting a motion to compel the release of certain immigration records in a dispute over insurance coverage following a fatal truck crash in New Mexico, according to Insurance Business.
The case stems from a November 17, 2023 collision in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, where a box truck rear-ended a pickup, leaving the pickup driver catastrophically injured and dead. The driver’s estate and others sued the trucking company, Tao Express, as well as Amazon and other parties, while Canal Insurance went to federal court seeking a declaration that it owed no duty to defend or indemnify.
Canal argued Tao Express and its driver failed to cooperate with the investigation, including claims they did not report the accident, claim, and loss. The estate’s representative said the insured may have gone silent because the company owner was deported, and the estate sought ICE records to show when the owner was detained, when he was deported, and where he was sent.
ICE opposed the request, citing internal rules and the federal Privacy Act, but the magistrate judge found the records relevant and said ICE did not show that producing an estimated two to three records would be a real burden. The recommendation is not final, with parties given 14 days to object and the district court still required to approve before any production.