Here's some more fuel for the fire. When is something going to be done about this problem? And it is a problem, especially here in Florida.
http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.d...73252836501309
FHP Thinks Suspect's ID Is Fake

By Amber Smith
The Ledger

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A FHP trooper appeared in court Thursday to ensure that Miguel Gonzalez, an illegal immigrant, would be held without bail. (PAUL JOHNSON/Ledger photo)
HAINES CITY -- Florida Highway Patrol investigators are looking into how illegal immigrant Miguel Gonzalez, charged in the hit-and-run death of an off-duty police officer, got what they think is a counterfeit Florida ID card.

Gonzalez, 43, of 3601 Baker Dairy Road, was charged in the Wednesday death of Haines City Officer Phoenix Braithwaite.

Gonzalez had his first appearance in the 10th Judicial Circuit Court on Thursday afternoon, where no plea was entered, but a public defender was appointed. He is being held without bail at the Polk County Jail.

"He is an illegal immigrant in this country. There's nothing keeping him here. We believed he would be a flight risk," Highway Patrol Cpl. John Carvalho told Bay News 9.

If Gonzalez had not fled the scene, he would have been given a ticket in the accident, said Carvalho, who was at Gonzalez's first appearance Thursday to make sure no bail was set.

"He made the wrong decision and he is going to have to pay the consequences," he told Bay News 9.

Investigators are still looking into the case, but they are convinced Gonzalez's state ID card is counterfeit. He never filed an application for an ID card, said Frank Penela, spokesman for the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

"There is no matching record to that name," Penela said. "It has to be counterfeit. We would have a record of it if it was valid."

Investigators will be checking into where Gonzalez got the ID card, said Trooper Kim Miller of the Highway Patrol, which is investigating the case.

"That will all be a part of the investigation, which could take anywhere up to 60 days before it is completed," said Miller, an FHP spokeswoman.

Gonzalez was driving a van that belonged to Maria Ponce-Luvianos, Miller said. She said investigators are trying to find out why he had her van.

Gonzalez and his two passengers were on their way to work at an Orlando golf course when the crash occurred.

All three are in the country illegally, according to U.S. Citizenship and Naturalization Services officials, who have interviewed them.

The two passengers, Orovelio Martinez and Javier Benitez, were picked up by USCNS officials and are being detained as material witnesses, Miller said. They are not being charged.

Martinez, who was sitting in the front passenger seat of the van, and Benitez, who was in the right rear seat, were taken to Osceola Regional Medical Center for treatment after the accident. Neither had life-threatening injuries, Miller said. She said Benitez is Gonzalez's brother.

Braithwaite, 24, was on his way to work about 5:25 a.m. Wednesday on U.S. 17-92 in Osceola County near the Polk County line when he was hit head-on by a van driven by Gonzalez, authorities said. He died at the scene.

Gonzalez was passing a tractor-trailer and a cement truck at the time of the accident. The force of the crash threw Braithwaite and his motorcycle into the trucks' path, which ran over them.

Gonzalez ran from the crash, but was arrested by Polk County sheriff's deputies about 4 p.m. Wednesday as he was walking back toward his home.

He is charged with leaving the scene of an accident where a death occurred, which is a second-degree felony, and not having a driver license.

As he was being led out of the Haines City Police Department on Wednesday and taken to Polk County Jail, Gonzalez said he ran because he was scared and didn't have a driver license.

Mario Mora Trejos, Gonzalez's pastor, did not want to talk about Gonzalez on Thursday.

A woman who said she is a family friend of Gonzalez said Thursday he is a kind and family-oriented man.

"Everybody makes mistakes," Hilda Benitz told Bay News 9. "Maybe he went into shock. We don't know. Only he knows what he felt during the accident.

"We are hurt by this," she said. "He's a good person, and it's a misfortune. It could have happened to anybody."

Braithwaite's funeral service will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the NorthRidge Christian Church at 2250 Scenic Highway S. in Haines City. He will be given a full law enforcement officer's funeral with honor guard.

"He was on his way to work when he was killed. He was on his way to protect and serve the citizens of Haines City. We feel he deserves the full honors," said police Chief Morris West.

Visitation will be held from 10 to 11 a.m. Tuesday at the church.

West said there has been an outpouring of sympathy for Braithwaite's family from the community and from various police agencies.

Braithwaite's wife, Ivette, has said she is not ready to give interviews about her husband's death. The couple have a 2-year-old daughter.

"We will continue to be here for her and whatever she needs," West said. "The department is a very close-knit family. Phoenix was one of our family."

Amber Smith can be reached at [email protected] or 863-422-6800. Ledger reporter Jason Geary contributed to this article.