A California seven-year-old who lost half her skull in a devastating truck crash met with federal officials to push for legislation preventing undocumented immigrants from obtaining commercial driver’s licenses, nearly two years after the collision left her permanently disabled.
Meeting With Trump Administration Officials
Dalilah Coleman and her parents met with US Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin at DHS headquarters to discuss the proposed Dalilah’s Law. The legislation would prohibit states from granting commercial driver’s licenses to undocumented individuals. Mullin emphasized the urgency of the bill, stating that Dalilah represents countless victims of illegal immigrant truck drivers. President Trump previously urged Congress to pass the measure during his State of the Union address earlier this year.
Marcus Coleman, Dalilah’s father, outlined plans to approach governors nationwide asking them to adopt the Dalilah Standard. This pledge would prevent undocumented immigrants from commercial truck driving and implement stricter trucking regulations. He revealed that California Governor Gavin Newsom’s office ignored his outreach attempts following the initial accident, providing no response to the family’s requests for assistance.
The Devastating 2024 Crash
On June 20, 2024, Partap Singh, an undocumented immigrant from India, was speeding through a construction zone when he failed to stop his truck for traffic. Singh had been granted a commercial driver’s license by California despite his immigration status. The collision left five-year-old Dalilah in a coma for three weeks. She required six months of hospital treatment, including a craniectomy that left her without half her skull for four months, according to DHS records.
The crash resulted in permanent disabilities for Dalilah. She now lives with diplegic cerebral palsy and global developmental delay, requiring lifelong therapy. Singh had entered the United States illegally through the southern border in October 2022 but was released by the Biden administration. ICE rearrested him in August 2025 to face deportation proceedings, and he remains in federal custody.
Push For Federal Legislation
The Trump administration has made Dalilah’s Law a priority in immigration enforcement policy. The proposed federal legislation would create uniform standards preventing states from issuing commercial driver’s licenses to undocumented individuals, closing what supporters call a dangerous loophole in public safety regulations. The Coleman family continues advocating for the law’s passage, using their daughter’s story to highlight the real-world consequences of current licensing policies that they believe prioritize political considerations over public safety and American families’ wellbeing.