NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — A Queens man has been sentenced to prison time for driving drunk before crashing into a grove of trees, leading to the death of his passenger.
Nicholas Thompson, 36, of Far Rockaway, was sentenced to 8.5 to 17 years in prison after pleading guilty last month to aggravated vehicular homicide charges.
According to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz, Thompson was driving drunk heading eastbound on Rockaway Boulevard in Far Rockaway on Sept. 26, 2020 around 7 p.m.
While driving, he reached up to 97 miles per hour as he approached Brookville Boulevard, when he lost control of the vehicle, Katz said. He veered off the road and crashed through a metal fence, drove through a field and hit a grove of trees at a speed of 74 miles per hour.
When authorities arrived at the scene, Thompson was outside of the car and told officers that his passenger, 32-year-old Jolenna Favor, was still inside the car. Officials said she had severe head and body trauma and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Meanwhile, officers said that Thompson was exhibiting signs of intoxication with bloodshot, watery eyes and slurred speech.
“The defendant refused to submit to a chemical test to determine his blood alcohol level. However, a Court-ordered blood test showed Thompson’s blood alcohol content was almost twice the legal limit of .08,” the DA said in a release.
Police also found that Thompson’s driver’s license had previously been revoked for multiple prior convictions for drunk driving in Pennsylvania.
“The defendant was both intoxicated and speeding – a deadly combination – when he crashed through a fence and slammed into a tree killing his passenger,” Katz said. “This selfish act of driving while drunk puts everyone on the road at risk. The sentence imposed by the Court today punishes the defendant for the needless death of this woman.”
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