A New Jersey congressman is calling for the state to scrap its sanctuary policies after an unlicensed driver allegedly killed a 9-month-old boy in a grocery store parking lot.
María Cobon-Guzmán, 20, a Guatemalan national living in Trenton, was charged Tuesday with five counts including manslaughter in the Aug. 28 death of Yitzchok Rosenberg in Jackson, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office. She has never held a driver’s license, investigators said.
Ariadna Lazaro-Flores, 22, a Mexican national living in Toms River, was charged with knowingly creating a substantial risk of death for letting Cobon-Guzmán drive. Ocean County Jail records show US Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers filed against both women, and Judge Kimarie Rahill denied them both bail.
Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) said he has called for the removal of the Garden State’s sanctuary status that would permit state and local enforcement agencies to work with federal immigration departments. The congressman noted that Lazaro-Flores was able to secure a driver’s license despite her status as an illegal immigrant.
A Department of Homeland Security official said that Cobon-Guzmán and Lazaro-Flores crossed the US-Mexico border illegally during the Biden administration. Lazaro-Flores did so on five occasions in October 2023 and was removed from the country each time, the official said.
The DHS official added that Cobon-Guzmán entered the US once and was released, but an immigration judge approved a deportation order July 31.
Cobon-Guzmán was behind the wheel of a Ford Fusion when she slammed into Golda Chana, who was pushing Yitzchok in a stroller, and her 5-year-old daughter, according to VIN News. All three victims were transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, where Yitzchok died.
The crash occurred after Lazaro-Flores allegedly allowed Cobon-Guzmán to take the wheel despite knowing she had no license. Prosecutors say this decision created a substantial risk of death, forming the basis for the charges against the car’s owner.
ICE is now actively seeking to deport both women as they remain in custody without bail. The detainers ensure that even if they were to post bond on the state charges, they would be transferred to federal immigration custody.
The case has intensified debate over New Jersey’s sanctuary policies, which limit cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities. Smith’s push for rollback represents the most direct political fallout from the incident so far.
The boy’s death has drawn national attention to the intersection of immigration enforcement and public safety, with federal officials explicitly linking the tragedy to border policies under the previous administration. The DHS official’s detailed accounting of both women’s border crossings underscores the agency’s position that existing enforcement gaps had direct consequences.
Yitzchok’s mother and sister survived the crash and were treated at the same hospital where the infant was pronounced dead. The family had been walking through the parking lot when the Ford Fusion struck them.