Richard Brown: Misdemeanor Plea for Driver Who Dragged Senior to Her Death and Fled

A Queens motorist who earlier this year dragged a senior to her death and left the scene had the top charge against her downgraded to a misdemeanor, in accordance with a plea agreement with District Attorney Richard Brown.

At around 7 a.m. on January 10, Jun Sum Yim, 77, was crossing Parsons Boulevard at 32nd Avenue, in the crosswalk with a walk signal, when 58-year-old Geum Min hit her with a Toyota Corolla while turning right onto Parsons, according to the Times-Ledger.

“The criminal complaint said Yim was knocked to the ground, went underneath the Corolla and was dragged for 193 feet as Min continued to drive,” the Times-Ledger reported. "According to the complaint, Min did not stop or report the accident."

Min reportedly went on with her day, driving to work at Flushing Hospital -- where Yim was pronounced dead -- and home when her shift ended. After she was arrested hours later, she told investigators she thought she had hit "a chunk of ice or something."

Brown initially charged Min with felony leaving the scene, failure to yield to a pedestrian, and failure to exercise due care.

To win a hit-and-run conviction in New York, prosecutors must prove a motorist knew or had reason to know a collision occurred. Min admitted knowledge of the collision. But Brown declined to take the case to trial, opting instead to allow Min to plead to a misdemeanor leaving the scene charge, according to court records.

The case fits the pattern of Brown signing off on favorable plea deals for hit-and-run drivers who kill people -- notable exceptions being when he declines to bring charges in the first place.

The original felony charge against Min carried a sentence of one to seven years in prison. The class A misdemeanor she pled to has a maximum penalty of one year in jail.

Ultimately, what’s most important is whether Min’s deal with Brown will keep her from operating a motor vehicle, which she is obviously incapable of doing without endangering other people. License sanctions, if any, won’t be made public until she is sentenced.

Min's next court appearance is scheduled for August.