Georgia Community Demands Answers After Beloved Teacher Killed In Crash Involving Man Fleeing ICE

Community members are mourning the loss of Dr. Linda Davis, a Chatham County–based special education teacher who died the morning of Feb. 16 after her vehicle was struck by Oscar Vasquez-Lopez, a man authorities say was fleeing ICE immigration agents when he crashed into her car, as NewsOne previously reported. 

Davis, who was in her first year at Herman W. Hesse K-8 School in Savannah, Georgia, was on her way to work when the collision occurred. Oscar Vasquez-Lopez was later arrested and charged with first-degree homicide, reckless driving, driving without a valid license and failure to obey a traffic control device, as previously reported. In the days since, students, colleagues and neighbors have shared tributes honoring her life and work.

Alonna McMullen, principal of Herman W. Hesse K-8, remembered Davis as an educator who “dedicated her career to ensuring that every child felt supported, valued, and capable of success,” during a Feb. 17 interview with CNN. “Her kindness, patience, and enthusiasm created a nurturing environment for her students and inspired those around her.”

Counseling will be made available to students and the facility impacted by the educator’s death, according to a statement shared on the Hesse K-8 School Facebook Page on Monday.

Who was Dr. Linda Davis?

According to CNN, Davis had been part of the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System since 2022. District spokesperson Sheila Blanco said she previously taught at Brock Elementary School before transitioning this year into a special education role at Hesse K-8. Though new to the school, administrators say her impact was immediate and lasting.

Former colleague Aisha Buchanan reflected on Davis’ kind spirit during an interview with CNN affiliate WTOC-TV.

“She always made you feel like you mattered,” Buchanan said. “Whether they’re a custodian or a teacher, a principal, or even a student, you always matter. And that was her message to everybody.”

What happened to Dr. Linda Davis?

As previously reported, in a Feb. 16 news release, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said officers attempted to apprehend Vasquez-Lopez, whom they identified as a Guatemalan national with a final order of removal issued in 2024. Authorities said he entered the United States at an unknown time and location.

According to ICE, officers observed Vasquez-Lopez enter a vehicle and initiated a traffic stop. After initially complying, he allegedly fled, made a U-turn, ran a red light, and collided with another vehicle. The driver of that vehicle, later identified as Davis,  sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. Vasquez-Lopez was hospitalized with minor injuries and is in custody, facing vehicular homicide charges from the Chatham County Police Department.

“This vehicular homicide is an absolute tragedy and deadly consequence of politicians and the media constantly demonizing ICE officers and encouraging those here illegally to resist arrest — a felony,” said Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. “These dangerous tactics are putting people’s lives at risk. Fleeing from and resisting federal law enforcement is not only a crime but extraordinarily dangerous and puts oneself, our officers and innocent civilians at risk. Now, an innocent bystander has lost their life.”

Community members say Dr. Linda Davis’ death was preventable.

Chatham County police told CNN they were not involved in, or aware of, the federal operation until after the crash. Information shared with CNN by the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office indicated Oscar Vasquez-Lopez did not appear to have outstanding warrants in the county.

Chatham County Chairman Chester Ellis told WTOC that greater coordination with local authorities might have changed the outcome.

“I’m saying to the President, on down to all of our national leaders, there’s a better way to do this. And I think if you allow us to be at the table to draw out strategies and come up with ways of doing things, we can prevent this,” Ellis stated firmly. 

Ellis noted that local agencies follow restrictive pursuit policies that could have prevented the tragedy.

“We have a no chase policy, and the no-chase policy is to help protect our citizens more than it is anything else. So there may have been a different way to corner the individual so that he could not run, or that he could not cause the accident that took the life of Dr. Davis.”

Davis’ death comes amid ongoing national debate over federal immigration enforcement practices under the Trump administration, including operations conducted during traffic stops, workplace sweeps and near schools.

On Feb. 17, local outlet 41NBC reported that a protest was held in Savannah, Georgia, to honor Davis. Demonstrators gathered at Forsyth Park for an event organized by the Party for Socialism and Liberation. Chants of “Justice for Linda Davis” echoed through the park as speakers called for changes to immigration enforcement tactics.

“Teachers are some of the most underappreciated people in our society,” said Tycen Tomms, an organizer with the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) who attended. “Teachers are forced to spend their own paychecks on supplies for their students — that’s commitment to nurturing the youth. When I was reading about Doctor Linda Davis, I knew this was a working-class person just like me, just like my mother, and I knew that I had to step out and protest.”

PSL also released a statement, demanding accountability from ICE for the educator’s death.

Detric Leggett, who also attended the protest, questioned why local agencies were not notified ahead of the operation.

“This is something that should not have happened,” Leggett said. “If there’s any kind of action happening from police, any agency, then it’s something that they should have had a conversation with our Chatham County Police, our sheriff’s department. Even the mayor and our city police should have been aware that this type of action was happening in our streets.”

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