NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- A 29-year-old man was sentenced for speeding through a red light in Inwood and causing a crash that killed two pedestrians in August 2022, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Jr. announced Friday.
Leandro Diaz-Ramirez was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 5-15 years in state prison. On Feb. 1, he pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter.
According to court documents, at 4:00 a.m. on Aug. 3, 2022, Diaz-Ramirez was driving a BMW at approximately 59 miles per hour in at 25 mile per hour zone. He sped through a red light at the intersection of Sherman Avenue and 207th Street and T-boned a Subaru that was driving through a green light at the same intersection.
The impact of the crash caused the Subaru to skid onto the sidewalk and crush two pedestrians - David Fernandez, 40, and Joel Adames, 31. The the driver broke his pelvis and several ribs.
Fernandez and Adames were friends and local Inwood residents, officials said.
Diaz-Ramirez was under the influence of marijuana at the time of the crash, authorities said.
"Leandro Diaz-Ramirez’s reckless driving caused the tragic death of two pedestrians. Leandro Diaz-Ramirez appropriately received the maximum sentence for Manslaughter in the Second Degree, but nothing can bring back Joel Adames and David Fernandez, whose lives were cut short. We cannot allow this type of speeding to become normalized because of the grave consequences it has on public safety, and my Office will continue to hold accountable drivers who harm pedestrians," DA Bragg said.