Oregon trucker facing two manslaughter counts returned to state jail after federal detention

Rajinder Kumar, 32, was returned to Oregon state custody on Oct. 26 to face two counts of first-degree manslaughter. The 32-year-old driver was held in federal immigration detention for six months before U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement released him to local prosecutors. This move ensures Kumar stands trial in Deschutes County Circuit Court for a fatal highway collision that killed two people.

The charges stem from a crash on Nov. 24, 2025, on U.S. Highway 20. Kumar allegedly jackknifed his commercial tractor-trailer across both lanes of traffic. William Micah Carter, 25, and his wife Jennifer Lynn Lower, 24, died in their Subaru Outback when they struck the vehicle. The couple had been married for 16 days at the time of the accident.

Kumar entered the United States on Nov. 28, 2022, near Lukeville, Ariz. Border Patrol agents apprehended him and released him into the country under the Biden administration pending removal proceedings. He later obtained federal work authorization and a California commercial driver's license. A Deschutes County grand jury indicted him for the crash, and he pleaded not guilty in state court.

A dispute over jurisdiction delayed his trial. After the indictment, ICE lodged an immigration detainer at Deschutes County Jail. County corrections officials declined to honor the federal hold on April 2, releasing Kumar under state sanctuary policies. ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations agents in Seattle arrested him on April 22 and detained him at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Wash.

Federal agents prepared for the transfer earlier this month. During the handover, Elizabeth Carter, William Carter's mother, spoke to Kumar through the window of an ICE vehicle. She told him, "I wanted you to know that I pray for you and your family, I know you didn't get up that morning planning to kill two newlyweds. And I know your family is going through something important too." Video of the exchange was released by the ICE Victims of Immigrant Crime Engagement office.

Julio Hernandez, acting Field Office Director for ICE ERO Seattle, stated that the coordinated action supports victims' families and prevents accused individuals from evading justice. DHS officials confirmed that federal deportation proceedings are paused while Oregon state prosecutors pursue the criminal charges.

Kumar faces three additional counts of recklessly endangering another person in Deschutes County. His criminal trial is pending in the local circuit court, with no scheduled date provided in the records.