IRLI: Driver Who Dragged Trooper at DUI Stop Was Here Illegally

September 1, 2020

Alien had a record of deportations, DUIs and danger to communities

WASHINGTON— A motorist in Maryland who dragged a state trooper with his vehicle after a roadside stop was an illegal alien with a checkered history of drunk driving and deportation, the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) has discovered.

On August 28, Julio Cesar Moran-Ruiz, 36, of Baltimore, was stopped by a Maryland State Police Trooper for suspected driving under the influence (DUI) northbound on Interstate 95 in Elkridge, Howard County, Md.  

According to sources, IRLI learned that Moran-Ruiz has a prior DUI conviction in the United States. He illegally reentered the United States multiple times and was deported as a fugitive in 2014. Moran-Ruiz was apprehended again twice that year by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency and returned to his native Mexico.    

The details of the incident in Maryland are common in what has become a growing national problem of impaired driving by those here illegally. Moran-Ruiz was observed weaving across lanes in his red Ford Escape and was stopped by the trooper. He gave a false name and was not carrying identification. Moran-Ruiz showed signs of impairment and the trooper asked him to get out of the car for field sobriety tests.

Moran-Ruiz refused to get out of his car. Instead, he shifted his car into drive. The trooper reached inside the car to turn off the ignition and take the keys, but Moran-Ruiz accelerated and drove off while the trooper’s arm was still inside the car.    

Moran-Ruiz drove off dragging the trooper more than a third of a mile on I-95. The trooper ordered Moran-Ruiz to stop his car and warned him that he would be shot—as the trooper was being dragged along the highway. The trooper was able to end the dangerous situation, protect the public, and save his own life by shooting Moran-Ruiz, who died at the scene. The trooper was found lying on the center median by another trooper and treated at the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center.   

Investigators found numerous alcoholic beverage containers inside Moran-Ruiz’s car and a machete under his seat. The knife was within his reach.

6“This is another tragic, disturbing story, the kind we hear far too often today,” said Dale L. Wilcox, executive director and general counsel of IRLI. “This individual was a danger to society, yet our porous immigration system allowed him to illegally enter our country multiple times and drive intoxicated on our roads. These incidents are preventable with greater immigration enforcement and a rejection of deadly sanctuary laws. It requires courage from our elected leaders, however, and that is in short supply at this time.”    

For additional information, contact: Brian Lonergan • 202-232-5590 • [email protected]