New York police officer killed by suspected drunk driver

An off-duty NYPD detective was tragically killed in a wrong-way crash on the morning of Feb. 27, according to investigators. A suspected drunk driver in a medically-induced coma with serious injuries is believed to be at fault for the accident, though an investigation is still underway. Charges against this driver may be pending, according to New York police sources. 

Apparently the 46-year-old detective was on his way to work around 4 a.m. when the crash occurred. It seems the 20-year-old driver was traveling the wrong way in the southbound lanes of Sprain Brook Parkway and had been doing so for approximately five miles. The two vehicles collided head-on. 

The detective was killed outright in the collision, and the other driver suffered traumatic injuries. He was taken to a local hospital and placed in a coma to heighten the chances of his survival. Police are waiting on blood samples to determine whether the man was drunk or otherwise under the influence of a substance at the time of the crash. The results of those samples will determine the next legal course of action taken in this tragic case. 

Should investigators decide the man was indeed a drunk driver or that he was otherwise intoxicated, he may face criminal charges in a New York court if he survives. Additionally, the family of the deceased detective may choose to file a wrongful death suit against the man (or his estate if he ultimately succumbs to his injuries). The success of such a suit is not contingent on a drunk driving charge because it has already been articulated that he was driving the wrong way, meaning a degree of culpability likely already exists. 

Source: CBS New York, “Off-Duty NYPD Detective Killed In Wrong-Way Crash On Sprain Brook Parkway“, Feb. 27, 2015