DMV: One-Month License Revocation for Con Ed Driver Who Killed Senior

4:00 PM EDT on September 13, 2016

A Con Ed employee was found guilty of careless driving after he struck and killed 88-year-old Stella Huang while turning left at Avenue C and E. 16th Street. The NYS DMV revoked his license for one month. Image: Google Maps

A Con Ed employee who fatally struck a Manhattan senior and was found guilty of careless driving had his license revoked for one month by the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles.

Andrew Franco hit 88-year-old Stella Huang with a Con Ed truck while making a left turn at Avenue C and E. 16th Street. The crash occurred at around 5:15 p.m. on November 27, 2013, a day when New York City motorists killed four pedestrians and one cyclist.

The Daily News reports that in August, nearly three years after the crash, the DMV revoked Franco’s license “after hearings and an appeal.”

In New York State, a license revocation means a motorist may apply to have his driving privileges reinstated after a prescribed period of time, which is normally a minimum of six months. Though according to the Daily News Franco was found guilty of failing to exercise due care -- which likely means Huang was walking with the right of way when he killed her -- the DMV deemed Franco eligible to get his license back after one month.

The News reports that Franco filed a lawsuit because the DMV isn't processing his application for reinstatement quickly enough.

Franco's lawyer, Michael McNulty, says the delay is "shocking to the conscience," particularly since Franco has a good record and needs the license to work. He is asking the court to reduce the penalty to a suspension so Franco's license could be reinstated immediately.

When a license is revoked, the DMV may or may not decide to restore driving privileges. A revocation is more severe than a suspension, which allows a driver to get his license back after a certain period of time simply by paying a fee. Essentially, then, Franco's attorney is arguing that since the DMV could not make a reinstatement determination at the end of one month, the revocation for killing a person while failing to exercise due care should be invalidated.

We've asked Con Ed if Franco continued to drive a truck for the company after he killed Stella Huang and was found guilty of careless driving, and if he may keep driving for Con Ed if he gets his license back. We also asked for info on Con Ed's driver safety protocols. We'll update this post if we get an answer.

Editor's note: This post was edited after publication.

Brad Aaron

Brad Aaron began writing for Streetsblog in 2007, after years as a reporter, editor, and publisher in the alternative weekly business. Brad adopted New York's dysfunctional traffic justice system as his primary beat for Streetsblog. He lives in Manhattan.

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