Couple married 16 days died before driver trial
Federal agents handed Rajinder Kumar back to state custody to face manslaughter charges after a dispute over his release.
By Isaac Medina ·
Thirty-two-year-old Rajinder Kumar was returned to Oregon state custody this month to stand trial for two counts of first-degree manslaughter. Federal agents transferred him from a detention facility in Tacoma, Washington, to Deschutes County authorities.
Kumar is accused of killing William Micah Carter, 25, and his wife, Jennifer Lynn Lower, 24, in a highway collision on November 24, 2025. The couple, who had been married for 16 days, were riding in a Subaru Outback when they struck a commercial tractor-trailer.
The crash occurred on U.S. Highway 20 when Kumar allegedly jackknifed his semi-truck across both lanes of traffic. Both passengers in the Subaru died at the scene. Kumar faces two counts of first-degree manslaughter and three counts of recklessly endangering another person in Deschutes County.
The transfer followed a legal dispute between federal and local officials. After a grand jury indicted Kumar, he pleaded not guilty in state court. ICE lodged an immigration detainer with the Deschutes County Jail, requesting notification before his release.
County corrections officials declined to honor the federal detainer on April 2. They released Kumar into the community under Oregon’s state sanctuary policies. On April 22, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations agents in Seattle arrested Kumar and detained him at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma.
ICE decided to return Kumar to state custody to ensure he faces the local felony charges before any deportation orders are executed. Federal deportation proceedings are currently paused while Oregon prosecutors pursue the criminal case in Deschutes County Circuit Court.
Court and immigration records indicate Kumar entered the United States near Lukeville, Arizona, on November 28, 2022. He was apprehended by U.S. Border Patrol and released into the country pending removal proceedings. During that time, he was granted federal work authorization and obtained a commercial driver's license from California.
Before the transfer, Elizabeth Carter, the mother of William Carter, spoke to Kumar through the passenger window of an ICE vehicle. Video from the ICE Victims of Immigrant Crime Engagement office captured the interaction. Carter told Kumar, “I pray for you and your family, I know you didn’t get up that morning planning to kill two newlyweds.”
Julio Hernandez, the acting Field Office Director for ICE ERO Seattle, stated that the return ensures accountability for the victims' families. He said the coordinated action protects the public and ensures an individual accused of these crimes does not evade justice.
