Left: Daniel Shane Canales appears via Zoom for his arraignment on July 17 (41B District Court via WJBK). Right: Alex Habib (GoFundMe).
A teenager from Michigan is set to face charges as an adult for second-degree murder along with other offenses after a car crash that resulted in the death of a newlywed father of two.
Daniel Shane Canales, age 16, attended his arraignment via Zoom at the 41B District Court in Macomb County on Thursday. Magistrate Ryan Zemke denied him bail. On Wednesday, Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido revealed in a press release that Canales would be facing charges as an adult after allegedly escaping from police in a stolen vehicle, leading them on a high-speed chase, and then colliding with a vehicle driven by 28-year-old Alex Habib.
Habib, a father of two young children who worked two jobs to support his family, died of his injuries after being taken to the hospital.
In the press release, Lucido explained the events that supposedly led up to the tragic crash in the early morning of July 12. Officers responded to a report at an apartment complex in Clinton Township and observed a car moving slowly with its lights off. When the police attempted to stop the car, it sped away “at a high rate of speed.”
During the arraignment on Thursday, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jeffrey Hall told the court that the car, which was allegedly being driven by Canales, reached speeds up to 130 mph.
The chase ended at around 3 a.m. when the vehicle collided with a Ford Fusion being driven by Habib, according to reporting by local NBC affiliate WDIV. Habib was taken to the hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. According to WDIV, Habib was working as both an Uber driver and at a restaurant to support his wife, whom he married just six months ago, and his two children, a 1-year-old and a 3-month-old.
Habib’s father-in-law told the station, “He was a great guy.”
When police got to 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 where he was arrested. He has since been released from the hospital and is now in custody at the Macomb County Juvenile Justice Center.
Hall told the court at the arraignment that Canales displayed a “lack of regard for authority” after allegedly speeding away from police. He further said, “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 added, “I do believe that the defendant does pose a risk to the public. I do believe that there is a concern for him to show up at court, given the severity of the offense, possible substance and lack of whole supervision for a minor.”
The 12-year-old passenger is not being charged as a co-defendant.
Zemke denied bond for Canales, who is scheduled to appear in court again on July 28. Canales is charged with second-degree murder, two counts of fleeing a police officer, operating a vehicle under a suspended, revoked or denied license, and unlawful driving away in a motor vehicle.
