Two young men in separate cases are alleged to have tragically killed three people in horrific car crashes that should have never happened.
In one case, a 22-year-old Queens man is charged with driving drunk and then barreling into another vehicle in South Ozone Park Monday morning. Both the 64-year-old driver of the car that was struck and his 71-year-old male passenger were killed.
The defendant allegedly had a blood alcohol level of .09 percent -- just above the DWI threshold of .08.
In the second case, a teenager from Long Island -- just 18 -- is accused of speeding through an Astoria intersection in early April. The youth, who was not licensed to drive and only had a permit, allegedly slammed into a 16-year-old riding an electric Citi Bike. According to the charges, the defendant was driving at approximately twice the speed limit. The bicyclist tragically died.
Drunk driving is never acceptable. And there is a reason drivers are licensed -- they must pass required tests and know the laws of the road and must abide by them. These are two tragic incidents that have left families devastated. And these two young men, both defendants in criminal cases now, face a future they surely could never have imagined. If convicted, both young men will serve lengthy terms of incarceration.
We must do better. Driving is a privilege. You must be licensed and obey posted traffic signs meant to protect not just you, the driver, but everyone else who shares the road with you.
My top priority will always be keeping you and your loved ones safe.
In Friendship,
Melinda Katz
Queens District Attorney
