A Fatal Chain of Mishaps

A Honduran national was released from custody with an active warrant for a stabbing in Maryland. He's just been charged with stabbing a man to death in New York.

Border inspection station, Champlain, New York. Source: Bobby Hidy.

If you want a snapshot of how broken our immigration system is, consider the case of Carlos Corrales-Ramirez, a man from Honduras.

At first glance, it seems like a local news affair. But step back, and what comes into view is the towering failure of the immigration policies casting their shadow on every part of the country.

The train of failure in Corrales-Ramirez’s story runs from local authorities to the offices of state governors and the White House.

It reached its terminus in September with the killing of a New York man. Corrales-Ramirez was indicted for his murder on Sept. 12. But he should never have been on the streets to begin with.

Back in February, he was involved in a non-fatal stabbing in Laurel, Maryland. The National Desk reported he had been well-known to local law enforcement, but there’s scant information publicly available as to why. “Laurel Police Department are familiar with [his] address and have responded to [the] address for multiple calls for service involving an individual identified as Carlos Enrique Corrales-Ramirez,” a February arrest warrant reviewed by TND stated.

The warrant cited a witness who said Corrales-Ramirez “stood outside a local 7-Eleven and begged for money almost daily.” That was where Corrales-Ramirez allegedly stabbed a man, leaving him in critical condition.

A spokesperson for the Laurel Police Department told WTEN that Corrales-Ramirez evaded police and was never arrested for that incident.

He surfaced again in March. U.S. Customs and Border Patrol grabbed him in Champlain, New York, near the Canadian border, because they suspected him of being in the U.S. “without status.” That was also when agents discovered he had an extraditable warrant from Maryland, so they turned custody over to New York State Police.

But he was never extradited to Maryland, and a detainer placed on him by Immigration and Customs Enforcement was reportedly removed.

Three months after Border Patrol caught him, Corrales-Ramirez walked out of jail on June 22.

Until now, much of what happened between March and September had been unclear. The search for answers triggered a blame game.