Man on ICE Hold Faces Vehicular Homicide Charges in Deadly East Tennessee Highway Crash

https://tennesseestar.com/news/man-o...er/2025/12/12/

December 12, 2025 Kaitlin Housler



A 39-year old suspected illegal alien from Honduras is in custody in Knox County for allegedly fleeing law enforcement while intoxicated and causing a deadly vehicular crash which killed a husband and wife earlier this month.

On December 4, Jose Roberto Rivera Recarte allegedly left a bar in Union County “after drinking and appearing to be impaired,” which prompted a witness, who offered the suspect for a ride, to contact law enforcement, according to warrants obtained by WBIR Knoxville.

Rivera Recarte went on to get into a vehicle and drive south on Maynardville Highway toward Knox County before Union County deputies located him and began “pursuing” him, arrest records show, WBIR said.

While Rivera Recarte initially stopped on Maynardville Highway in Halls, he allegedly proceeded to flee the scene, cross over a median, and hit two vehicles in the turn lane at the intersection of Maynardville Highway and Norris Freeway.

One of the vehicles Rivera Recarte allegedly hit was occupied by husband and wife Lathan Blair and Donna Jolene Blair, who died as a result of the crash.

WBIR reports that Rivera Recarte was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash and had to be extracted from the vehicle by an on-duty officer.

The outlet said that officer observed Rivera Recarte having bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and an “odor of alcohol,” to which Rivera Recarte claimed he had only had one drink, but warrants revealed he later told police he had not had “any alcohol at all.”

Further, according to WBIR, Rivera Recarte presented officers at the scene with a Honduran passport instead of a driver’s license. He also reportedly did not have insurance on the vehicle.

After performing an Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus Test on Rivera Recarte, Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers recorded that the suspect “exhibited equal pupil size and demonstrated all distinct clues of impairment.”

Rivera Recarte was taken into custody at the scene for driving under the influence.

According to Rivera Recarte’s public inmate record from the Knox County Sheriff’s Office website, he faces a significant number of charges.

The most severe among the charges is vehicular homicide due to driver intoxication. Other charges include evading arrest with risk of death or injury, aggravated assault (reckless, attempted), and reckless endangerment involving a deadly weapon, as well as several traffic-related violations such as driving without a license, seatbelt violations, lane violations, and insurance-related infractions.

Rivera Recarte’s record shows that he is subject to a hold by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

A GoFundMe fundraiser for the deceased husband and wife further claims the vehicle operated by Rivera Recarte was stolen.
– – –
Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.