Triple fatal at Colo. ice cream shop stirs outrage
By Ivan Moreno
ASSOCIATED PRESS
10:59 a.m. September 10, 2008

DENVER – With 12 aliases and two dates of birth, Guatemala native and suspected illegal immigrant Francis M. Hernandez compiled a long Colorado rap sheet but managed to stay off immigration officials' radar screen.

Hernandez, who officials say passed himself off as a U.S. citizen, now sits behind bars, accused of causing a horrific crash at a suburban Denver ice cream shop that killed three – including a 3-year-old boy. The tragedy has politicians clashing with each other over illegal immigration and promises to re-ignite what was once a top national campaign issue.

Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter ruefully acknowledged the system failed in Hernandez's case. Republican Rep. Tom Tancredo, who based his presidential campaign on illegal immigration, claimed the governor and Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper have “blood on their hands.â€