Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota called upon Albany lawmakers in June 2014 to toughen the penalties for hit-and-run drivers. Spota stated that many drivers who are drunk or impaired by drugs often flee the scene of accidents because they know that hit-and-run penalties are not as severe as sentences for DWI charges. Spota remarked, “A drunk or […]
DWI/Criminal
NY Jury Finds Young Driver Guilty of Vehicular Manslaughter in Car Crash that Killed Four Teenagers
A Nassau County jury convicted Joseph Beer, 19, of four counts of vehicular manslaughter in June 2014 for a 2012 car crash that left four of Beer’s friends dead. Beer, who admitted to smoking marijuana before speeding over 100 mph on the Southern State Parkway, was also found guilty of reckless driving and reckless endangerment, […]
Inmates File Class-Action Lawsuit Alleging Deplorable and Inhumane Conditions in Suffolk County Jails
In April 2012, over 100 former and current inmates at the Riverhead and Yaphank jail facilities in Suffolk County, Long Island filed a lawsuit claiming that the conditions of the facilities were inhumane and deplorable. The lawsuit states that the alleged conditions at the jails violate the inmates’ constitutional rights because the jails’ conditions amount to cruel […]
Woman Charged Under Leandra’s Law after Allegedly Driving Drunk with Three Children in the Car
Suffolk County police arrested Sarah Knakal, 30, for allegedly driving drunk with her three young children in the car on Mother’s Day. Knakal was charged with aggravated DWI, a class E felony punishable by up to four years in prison, after police said she was driving drunk with her three children, ages give, seven and nine, in […]
New York Man Files Lawsuit Alleging Excessive Force by Nassau County Police Officers
Westbury resident Kyle Howell, 20, filed a lawsuit in early May 2014 against the Nassau County Police Department (NCPD) that claims two officers used excessive force against him during a routine traffic stop on April 25, 2014. After being punched and kneed in the face by the officers, Howell suffered from a broken nose, facial fractures, nerve […]
Study: Administrative License Suspensions Reduce Alcohol-Related Fatalities
According to a study conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, administrative license suspension (ALS) laws reduce the number of fatalities on the road during nighttime hours when people are most likely to drink and drive. Such laws authorize the police and law enforcement authorities to confiscate the license of anyone who refuses to take […]
Two Wrongfully Convicted Men Awarded $18 Million Each by Jury
Two men who were exonerated of raping and murdering a 16-year-old Nassau County girl in 1984 were awarded $18 million each by a federal jury in April 2014. After a four-week trial in the U.S. District Court in Central Islip, New York, jurors determined that John Restivo and Dennis Halstead, who each served 18 years in prison […]
Nassau DA: Ballistic Evidence in 45 Cases to be Retested after Lab Technician Admits Error
In a letter sent out to multiple defense attorneys in April 2014, Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice stated that her office is sending out ballistic evidence in 45 cases to be retested after a lab technician in an out-of-state lab admitted that he made an error in testing evidence for one case. The letter […]
Long Island Man Charged Under Strengthened Leandra’s Law for Allegedly Driving Drunk with Four-Year-Old Daughter in Car
Jose Umanzor, 34, was arrested in April 2014 after Suffolk County police say he was driving drunk with his four-year-old daughter in the vehicle. He was charged with aggravated driving while intoxicated and endangering the welfare of a child under Leandra’s Law, which makes it a felony to drive drunk with a child in the […]
Police Arrest 16-Year-Old Juvenile for Setting High Rise Fire that Killed NYPD Officer
Detectives arrested 16-year-old Marcell Dockery for allegedly starting a fire in an 18-story apartment building in Coney Island in April 2014. The fire severely injured NYPD officer Rosa Rodriguez, 36, and killed Dennis Guerra, 38, also an NYPD officer. Both officers were responding to 911 calls that a fire had started in a Coney Island […]
Attorney General: NYPD’s Stop and Frisk Policy Has Conviction Rate of Three Percent
According to a November 2013 report released by the New York State Attorney General’s office, only three percent of people arrested as a result of stop and frisk pled guilty or were convicted of a crime. The study, titled “A Report on Arrests Arising from the New York City Police Department’s Stop-and-Frisk Policies,” analyzed stop […]
Former NYC Employee Sentenced to Probation for Falsifying Crane Inspection Records
Justice Thomas Farber of the State Supreme Court in Manhattan sentenced former city employee Edward J. Marquette, 51, to five years probation in February 2013 for falsifying crane inspection records. In July 2012, Farber found Marquette guilty of filing a false instrument, falsifying business records and official misconduct. However, Marquette was found not guilty of […]
Martin Tankleff Receives Over $3.3 Million from New York in Wrongful Imprisonment Settlement
Martin Tankleff received a $3.375 million settlement in January 2014 as a result of a wrongful imprisonment lawsuit he filed against New York State. Tankleff spent 17 years in prison after being convicted of the brutal murders of his parents in 1988 in the Belle Terre home on Long Island. Tankleff was released from prison […]
MTA Driver Killed, Three Injured, after Stolen Truck Collides with Bus in the City
William Pena, 49, a 17-year veteran of the MTA and a father of a 14-year-old daughter, was killed in February 2014 after a stolen box truck driven by Domonic Whilby, 22, crashed into the bus he was driving in Greenwich Village. According to police, Pena was thrown from the driver’s seat and landed under the […]
Registered Nurse Charged with Stealing Morphine Intended for Patients
Katherine Falzetta, 23, a Registered Nurse at the Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital in Clinton, New York, was arrested in May 2013 for stealing morphine from patients not under her care. Falzetta appeared in Plattsburgh City Court before Judge Mark Rogers and was released on her own recognizance. She was charged with first-degree falsifying business records, […]
Suffolk County Police Sergeant Arrested for Stealing from Latino Drivers During Traffic Stops
A 25-year veteran of the Suffolk County Police Department in Long Island, New York was arrested in January 2014 for stealing $100 from an undercover Latino police officer pulled over during a traffic stop. Suffolk County Police Sergeant Scott Greene, 50, was caught on a hidden surveillance camera planted in the undercover car stealing the […]
Muslims Sue NYPD Over Secret Surveillance Program
Backed by the American and New York Civil Liberties Unions, New York Muslims filed a federal lawsuit in June 2013 against the New York Police Department (NYPD). The lawsuit claims that secret NYPD programs that monitor Muslims in the Northeast are invasive and unconstitutional. The NYPD instituted such surveillance programs after the September 11 terrorist […]
Studies: Driving Hung-over Just as Serious as Driving Drunk
According to the latest studies, driving while hung-over is just as dangerous as driving drunk. In research conducted by Utrecht University in the Netherlands, study participants had 10 drinks at night. The next morning, when their blood alcohol contents were zero, they took a one hour driving test. The participants had difficulty concentrating and driving […]
Driver Facing Numerous Charges after Brooklyn Car Accident
The driver responsible for a multi-car accident in Brooklyn that injured several people will face a variety of charges, according to ABC News. The accident occurred as the driver was attempting to evade police early Wednesday morning. The police car that had been chasing the suspect was also involved in the crash, as was another […]
White Plains Car Accident Report: Driver in NYC Car Accident Charged with DWI
According to the NY Daily News, the driver responsible for an early morning crash last Wednesday has been charged with DWI. The crash injured six people total, including the driver and a passenger in his car. Witnesses speculated that the driver may have been racing another car when the collision occurred in the East Village […]
Charges Pending Against Driver after Fatal Car Crash in Brooklyn
CBS New York is reporting that charges are pending against a Brooklyn driver whose passenger was killed in a crash early Monday morning. Police have said that the driver faces charges of DWI, manslaughter, reckless driving, and criminally negligent homicide. The driver was speeding on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway when she hit the divider. A backseat […]
New York Cab Driver Acquitted of Attempted Murder Charges
A New York City cab driver who had been on trial for the attempted murder of two would-be passengers was acquitted yesterday of the attempted murder charges. Instead, he was convicted of reckless assault and leaving the scene of an accident. The charges stemmed from an incident in 2011, during which the driver, Mohammed Azan, […]
Bronx Motor Vehicle Inspectors Arrested for Fake Inspections
Last week, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman released a statement detailing the arrests of eight motor vehicle inspectors, who are charged with falsifying inspection certificates. Combined, the eight inspectors certified more than thirteen thousand uninspected vehicles, often charging exorbitant amounts of money to push the certifications through. The defendants allegedly used knowledge of the […]
Manhattan (NYC) Cosmetic Surgeon Surrenders to Face Manslaughter Charges
A Manhattan cosmetic surgeon whose patient died after a risky liposuction procedure turned himself in to police last week on charges of manslaughter, reports the New York Post. Dr. Oleg Davie performed the procedure on a patient who had received a heart transplant in 2004, making the liposuction an extremely dangerous operation. In addition, authorities […]
Brooklyn Judge Arrested for DWI
A Brooklyn Supreme Court justice was arrested last week in upstate New York on suspicion of drunk driving. According to the NY Post, the judge failed a roadside sobriety test and also refused to agree to a blood test. The judge has a court date set for later this month. The Post did not provide […]