Unlicensed, Hit-and-Run Drivers Kill First NYC Pedestrian Victims of 2015

Motorists struck four pedestrians in two crashes in Manhattan and the Bronx over the weekend, killing two victims. One driver in the Bronx was charged with leaving the scene and reckless driving, while another remains at large. The Manhattan motorist, operating a vehicle with TLC plates, was ticketed for driving without a license, though NYPD blamed the victims in the press. The drivers were not charged for causing death and injury by NYPD or district attorneys Cy Vance and Robert Johnson.

At approximately 7:18 p.m. Saturday, Wesley Mensing and Erin Sauchelli were crossing E. 62nd Street at Lexington Avenue north to south when Aliou Diallo, eastbound on 62nd, drove a Mercedes SUV into them, according to NYPD, the Post, and the Daily News.

Mensing, 27, a noted golf instructor who lived in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, died at the scene. He was the first known New York City pedestrian fatality of 2015. Sauchelli, 30, was hospitalized with head and leg injuries.

Diallo was summonsed -- but was not charged criminally -- for unlicensed driving, NYPD said. Citing unnamed police sources, the Post reported that Mensing and Sauchelli were “not in the crosswalk,” and an NYPD spokesperson told Streetsblog they were crossing E. 62nd between Lexington and Third Avenue. Yet photos of the scene show the SUV sitting on E. 62nd just a few feet from the intersection, which seems to indicate that Mensing and Sauchelli were struck within or very close to the crosswalk.

NYPD has a history of relying solely on driver testimony when investigating pedestrian and cyclist deaths. Since the Right of Way Law took effect last August, expressly making it a misdemeanor offense for motorists to injure or kill people with the right of way, police have repeatedly blamed deceased pedestrians by claiming they were outside a crosswalk when they were struck by motorists.

NYPD had no information on how fast Diallo was driving, or how he failed to see two people in the street in front of him. Regardless of how the crash occurred, it is a crime in New York State to drive a vehicle if you know or have reason to know you don't have a valid license. The investigation is "ongoing," according to NYPD.

Also at issue is how an alleged unlicensed driver was allowed to operate a TLC-licensed vehicle. Saturday’s crash marked at least the second time in the past year that an accused unlicensed driver killed a pedestrian or cyclist with a livery cab. Streetsblog has asked the TLC for information on the livery base associated with the SUV Diallo was driving and whether Diallo had a current hack license at the time of the crash.

The crash that killed Wesley Mensing and injured Erin Sauchelli occurred in the 19th Precinct, and in the City Council district represented by Dan Garodnick.

Two hit-and-run drivers hit two teenagers in the Bronx late Sunday afternoon. Dylon Ramirez, 16, and a 15-year-old girl were crossing Baychester Avenue at Crawford Avenue when they were hit by the driver of a Honda sedan, according to the Daily News. Ramirez was propelled into another lane and was hit by a second driver. He died at Jacobi Medical Center, the News reported, and the girl was hospitalized in critical condition.

The driver of the Honda returned to the scene. Shawn Williams, 26, was charged with felony leaving the scene and reckless driving, NYPD said. The NYPD press office had no information indicating that Williams was charged under Local Law 50, which as of 2015 attaches civil penalties to hit-and-run crashes when a driver “knows or has cause to know” an injury has occurred.

The crash that killed Dylon Ramirez and injured a teenage girl occurred in the 47th Precinct, and in the City Council district represented by Andy King.