Updated
Updated · Fox News · Sep 1
Patricia Fox Tells House Colorado Sanctuary Policies Cost Her Family $127 Million and a Daughter's Future
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Sep 1

Patricia Fox Tells House Colorado Sanctuary Policies Cost Her Family $127 Million and a Daughter's Future

1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Sep 1

Summary

  • Patricia Fox told a House Judiciary subcommittee that her 22-year-old daughter Carissa was left minimally conscious, nonverbal and wheelchair-bound after a March 28, 2025 crash in Aurora, Colorado.
  • Fox said Valeria De Los Angeles Bermudez Marcano, a Venezuelan in the U.S. illegally, ran a stop sign, crossed three lanes, hit the motorcycle carrying Carissa and fled the scene with passengers.
  • Eighteen months later, Fox testified, Carissa still needs round-the-clock care after emergency brain surgery, while the family faces seven-figure medical bills and $3,000 to $4,000 a month in denied therapy, equipment and care costs.
  • Fox said prosecutors dropped all but one reduced Class 5 felony charge, ordered just $15,000 restitution for the motorcycle, and deportation came only after the family contacted ICE's VOICE office.
  • She contrasted that outcome with Colorado's projected $127 million for Cover All Coloradans, using the case to argue that sanctuary and immigrant-friendly licensing policies shift public-safety and financial burdens onto victims' families.

Insights

What systemic failures led Medicaid to deny a wheelchair for a minimally conscious crash survivor requiring round-the-clock care?
How did a legal system secure only property restitution while ignoring seven-figure medical bills for a catastrophic brain injury?
Beyond crowdfunding, what structural safety nets exist for families burdened by million-dollar medical debts after a devastating hit-and-run?