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Carnage

The Weekly Carnage

12:29 PM EDT on July 31, 2009

The Weekly Carnage is a Friday round-up of motor vehicle mayhem
across the metro region. For more on the origins and purpose of this
column, please read About the Weekly Carnage.

Editor's note: Due to ongoing web site construction, Newsday content is again limited this week. Casualty reports are lower as a result. 

Fatal Crashes (20 Killed This Week, 93 Killed This Year*, 11 Drivers Charged**)

    • Bronx: Unidentified Pedestrian Killed in Hit-and-Run (News)
    • Staten Island: Motorcyclist Dies in Collision With Car (SI Advance)
    • Briarcliff Manor: Baffling Wrong-Way Crash on Taconic Parkway Leaves Eight Dead (NYT, NYT, News)
    • Related: Driver May Have Had Vision Problems; Cell Phone Found on Roadside (NYT, Newsday)
    • Copiague, LI: Four Die in Head-On Crash; Drag Racing Suspected (News, Post, Newsday)
    • Long Beach, LI: FedEx Driver Hits Cars, Kills Pedestrian; Police Eager to Exonerate (Newsday)
    • East Meadow, LI: 68-Year-Old Pedestrian Killed by 82-Year-Old Driver (Post)
    • Jamesport, LI: Two Dead, One Hurt When Car Crosses Center Line, Hits SUV (Newsday)
    • Trumbull, CT: Speeding Driver Ejected From Vehicle After Hitting Another Car (CT Post, CT Post)
    • Seaside Heights, NJ: "American Idol" Contestant Alexis Cohen Killed in Hit-and-Run (News)
    • Related: Repeat DUI Offender Arrested, Charged With Manslaughter (Star-Ledger)

Injuries, Arrests and Property Damage

    • Brooklyn: Reportedly Speeding Driver Hits Teen on Fulton Street (Streetsblog)
    • Bronx: Off-Duty Officer Seriously Hurt When Motorcycle Hits Trash Truck (Post)
    • Manhattan: Cab Combusts Outside Plaza Hotel; No Injuries (Post)
    • Staten Island: Up to 11 Vehicles Involved in SI Expressway Pile-Up (SI Advance)
    • Newark: Police Chase Ends in Crash, Shootout (Star-Ledger)
    • Jersey City: Elected Aids Racing Motorcyclist After Crash, Calls for Prosecution (Jersey Journal)
    • Greenwich, CT: Weather Cited in Two Crashes (CT Post)
    • Fairfield, CT: SUV Flips in Three-Car Collision (CT Post)
    • Fairfield Co.: DUI Exploits Lead to Three Arrests (CT Post)
    • Mahopoc, NY: Driver-Cyclist Crash Sparks Flip Headline, All-Too-Predictable Comments (LoHud 1, 2)
    • Yonkers: Six Injured in School Bus Crash (LoHud)
    • West Nyack, NY: Wreck Leaves Three Hospitalized, One in Serious Condition (LoHud)
    • Hunterdon Co., NJ: Man Arrested After Gunning Car at Trooper (Star-Ledger)
    • Readington, NJ: Woman Trapped in Car After Colliding With Truck (Star-Ledger)
    • New Rochelle: Car Plunges Onto Tracks, Barely Missing Amtrak Train and Passengers (LoHud)
    • Farmingdale, LI: Car Crashes Into House, Causes Gas Leak, Injures "At Least One" (Newsday)
    • Ramapo, NY: Camper Separates From SUV on Thruway (LoHud)

Following Up

    • Manhattan: Police Continue Search for Driver Who Left Harlem Ped Near Death (News)
    • Related: Mother of Two Originally Reported Killed (News)
    • Brooklyn: Cop Who Lost Leg to Driver Leaves Hospital (News)
    • Morristown, NJ: Unlicensed Hit-and-Run Driver Gets Probation for Killing Pedestrian (Star-Ledger)
    • New Brunswick, NJ: Three Charged in Racing Crash That Left Another Driver in Coma (Star-Ledger)
    • NJ.com Reader Wonders Why Plaxico Burress Should Do More Time Than Donte' Stallworth
    • Somerset Co., NJ: 18-Year-Old in DWI Crash Sues Tavern for Serving Her Alcohol (Star-Ledger)

Out of Town

    • Asheville, NC: Driver Shoots Cyclist for Riding With Child (Streetsblog)
    • Norfolk, VA: Staten Island Woman Killed in DUI Crash (SI Advance)
    • Savannah, GA: Queens Man, Two Family Members Killed by Drunk Driver (News)
    • Lockport, NY: Talking and Texting Tow Truck Driver Hits Car, House, Pool; 2 Injured (AP)
    • Rome: After Losing Dad in 1992 Wreck, Australian Swimmer's Brother Killed in Crash (AP)

Trends

    • Ray Kelly Takes a Pass on Asking Albany for Traffic Cam Legislation (Streetsblog)
    • New Jersey Officials Dumbstruck by Spiraling Ped Death Toll (Streetsblog)
    • Stratford, CT: Police Remove Resident Signs Urging Drivers to Slow Down (CT Post)
    • CT Alcohol-Related Deaths Drop; MADD Says Not Enough (CT Post)
    • In the Hamptons, Driving Drunks Home Is a Cottage Industry (Newsday)
    • Chuck Schumer Wants Federal Ban on Texting While Driving (LoHud)

* Since the week of June 8
** Drivers charged for deaths since the week of June 8, based on latest available reports

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