LAUREL HOLLOW, N.Y. (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) -- An alleged drunk driver faces manslaughter and other charges Monday after prosecutors say he killed a married couple in a wrong-way crash in Nassau—a crash that came just days after a DWI crash in the county left four family members dead.
The latest deadly collision happened in Laurel Hollow at 12:30 a.m. Saturday.
The victims were in a 2013 Ferrari convertible heading westbound on the North Hempstead Turnpike when the driver of a 2023 Acura MDX going eastbound crossed the yellow divider and hit them near Moores Hill Road, police said.
A 37-year-old woman in the passenger seat of the Ferrari was pronounced dead at the scene, while her 37-year-old husband, who was driving, was rushed to a hospital, where he was also pronounced dead.
They haven't been officially identified by authorities.
The Acura's driver, Sotirios Spanos, 32, remained at the scene and was arrested without incident, according to police, who said he was intoxicated at the time of the crash. Officers said he was unsteady on his feet and had slurred speech and bloodshot eyes.
Spanos, of Syosset, was held without bail on charges of aggravated vehicular homicide, two counts of manslaughter, two counts of assault, driving while intoxicated and reckless driving.
Charging documents allege he had a blood alcohol content of 0.226%, nearly three times the legal limit of 0.08%.
Family members of the victims cried in court as they attended the arraignment.
Spanos' lawyer, Steve Epstein, said this is his client's first run-in with the law and that there's still a lot to investigate.
“It was a tragic accident with two fatalities, and my client’s entire family and my client are remorseful for the consequences of the accident," Epstein said. "But not every accident involves criminal responsibility. And there’s a lot to investigate, and so I just ask that everybody be patient before forming judgment.”
The crash came less than a week after another 32-year-old man, who was allegedly speeding and had cocaine and fentanyl in his system, crashed into an SUV at a light in Massapequa last Sunday evening, killing a 60-year-old father along with his 13-year-old son, 10-year-old daughter and 6-year-old granddaughter. Multiple other people were also injured.
Hours after that crash, an 18-year-old driver was speeding in West Hempstead early last Monday morning when he allegedly hit a parked car, killing a 6-year-old girl and injuring multiple people, police said.
Suffolk County is ranked as number one for traffic fatalities in New York State, according to the latest TRIP report covering the past five years. Nassau County isn't far behind at number three.
Eric Alexander, the director of Vision Long Island, said speeding is a major problem. Among the fixes that could save lives, he said, is adding more crosswalks, improving lighting and reducing the width of streets.
"You’ve got 13 foot, sometimes 14 foot, 15 foot lanes going through downtowns—that's the width of the Long Island Expressway," Alexander said. "When lanes are wide they induce speeding."
Alexander said the federal government has plenty of grants available to help towns and villages change their dangerous roadways.
"We're talking about simple fixes," Alexander said. "It's really trying to get the driver to slow down by design."
Related
Related
Related
