A Michigan teenager will be charged as an adult with second-degree murder and other charges stemming from a car accident that killed a newly married father of two.
Daniel Shane Canales, 16, appeared for his arraignment at Macomb County’s 41B District Court via Zoom on Thursday, but Magistrate Ryan Zemke denied him bond. On Wednesday, Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido announced in a press release that Canales would be charged as an adult after allegedly fleeing police in a stolen car, leading officers on a high-speed chase, and colliding with a car driven by 28-year-old Alex Habib.
Habib, a father of two young children who worked two jobs to support his family, died from his injuries after being transported to the hospital.
In his press release, Lucido described the events that allegedly led up to the fatal collision on July 12. Police responded to a call at an apartment complex in Clinton Township and discovered a vehicle driving slowly with its headlights and taillights turned off. When officers attempted to stop the car, it fled the scene “at a high rate of speed.”
During the arraignment on Thursday, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jeffrey Hall told the court that the car allegedly driven by Canales reached speeds of up to 130 mph.
The chase ended around 3 a.m. when the vehicle collided with a Ford Fusion driven by Habib, according to local NBC affiliate WDIV. Habib was taken to the hospital, where he died from his injuries. According to WDIV, Habib was working as both an Uber driver and at a restaurant to support his wife, whom he married only six months ago, and their two children, a one-year-old and a three-month-old.
Habib’s father-in-law told the station that “he was a great guy.”
When police arrived at the car with Canales behind the wheel, the teenager reportedly had life-threatening injuries and a 12-year-old child as a passenger. Canales was taken to the hospital and arrested. He has since been released from the hospital and is currently detained at the Macomb County Juvenile Justice Center.
During the arraignment, Hall stated that Canales demonstrated a “lack of regard for authority” by allegedly speeding away from police. He continued: “The fact that the 16-year-old was out at 2:30 a.m. with the 12-year-old stealing a car shows a lack of parental authority for supervision of the son.”
Hall went on to say, “I believe the defendant poses a risk to the public. I believe it is a concern for him to appear in court, given the gravity of the offense, potential substance, and lack of complete supervision for a minor.”
The 12-year-old passenger is not charged as a co-defendant.
Zemke denied Canales’ bond, and he is scheduled to appear in court again on July 28. Canales is charged with second-degree murder, two counts of fleeing a police officer, driving with a suspended, revoked, or denied license, and unlawful driving away in a motor vehicle.
