The Weekly Carnage

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.

Fatal Crashes (12 Killed This Week, 117 This Year*, 12 Drivers Charged**)

• Manhattan: Cab Driver on Phone Kills Boy, 8; NYPD: Driver “Broke No Laws” (Post, News, WCBS)
• Related: Perhaps Police Only Talked to This Witness (1010 WINS)
• Related: Post Tells Bloomberg, Kelly, Daus to Stop the Carnage
• Queens: Cyclist Killed by Man Fleeing Police; Charges Filed (Streetsblog, Newsday)
• Brooklyn: Driver Hits 91-Year-Old Ped, Cars, Apartment Building; “No Criminality Suspected” (News)
• Staten Island: Former Mafia Figure Killed in Motorcycle Crash (Post)
• Staten Island: Motorcyclist Killed in Collision With Livery Cab (SI Advance)
• Palisades Park, NJ: SUV Thief Kills Self, Woman Sitting at Bus Stop (Star-Ledger)
• Mahopac, NY: Teen Driver, High on Pot, Slams Into Tree, Killing Passenger (LoHud)
• Yonkers: Pedestrian Killed in I-87 Hit-and-Run (LoHud)
• Bedford, NY: “Inattentive” Pregnant Mother in One-Car Crash, Killing 21-Month-Old Son (LoHud)
• Kings Park, LI: Man Killed, Daughters Hurt in Collision With Repeat Reckless Driver (Newsday)
• Norwalk, CT: Motorcyclist Killed, Passenger Injured in Collision With Car (CT Post)

Injuries, Arrests and Property Damage 

• Queens: Pedestrian Almost Run Over, Twice, Then Charged With Criminal Mischief (Streetsblog)
• Queens: Teen Drag Race Crash Injures 12-Year-Old Passenger; Drivers Charged (News, Newsday)
• Manhattan: 12 Injured When Van Carrying Disabled Teens Hits SUV (News)
• 75-Year-Old Drives Wrong Way Across Tappan Zee Bridge (Gothamist)
• Yonkers: SUV Driver Hits, Injures Invisible Pedestrian; No Charges (LoHud)
• Pearl River, NY: Three Teens Injured When SUV Plows Into Lake (LoHud)
• Peekskill, NY: At Least Three Hospitalized After Two-Car Crash (LoHud)
• Hampton Bays, LI: DWI Driver Hits, Seriously Injures Three Pedestrians (Newsday)
• Hampton Bays, LI: Woman Hits Teen Cyclist, Charged With DWI (Newsday)
• Stratford, CT: 13-Year-Old Cyclist Hit, Suffers Serious Injuries (CT Post)
• Fairfield, CT: Speeding Driver Hits Stone Wall, Flips Escalade (CT Post)
• New Milford, CT: Driver Rounds Curve Too Fast, Rolls Car; Two Injured (CT Post)
• Hempstead, LI: 19-Year-Old Arrested for Torching Boyfriend’s Car (Newsday)
• East Rutherford, NJ: One-Car Crash Leaves Two Critical, One on the Run (Star-Ledger)
• Harding, NJ: Driver Loses Control, Leaves Interstate, Hits Tree; Car Bursts Into Flames (NJ.com)
• Bedminster, NJ: Man Caught After Crashing Into On-Call Ambulance, Fleeing Scene (Star-Ledger)

Following Up

• Bronx: Family of Manhattan Woman Killed in Upstate Crash Sues Bus Company (News)
• Investigation Continues in Wrong-Way Taconic Crash (Newsday)
• Related: Letter to the Editor: Driving Under the Influence Is No “Accident” (LoHud)
• Southeast, NY: Fund Raiser Held for Family of Mother-Daughter Peds Killed by DWI Driver (LoHud)
• New Haven, CT: Two Plead Guilty in Fleeing Scene of Fatal 2008 Motorcycle Crash (CT Post)
• Shelton, CT: Man Charged With Negligent Homicide in 2008 Motorcyclist Death Surrenders (CT Post)
• Stratford, CT: Driver Hit by Cop Who Had Seizure Wants Car Fixed (CT Post)
• Essex, NJ: Six Months Later, Police Plead for Help in Fatal Hit-and-Run (Star-Ledger)

Out of Town

• West Park, NY: Pedestrian From Brooklyn Struck and Killed; No Charges Filed (Poughkeepsie Jrnl)
• Dinuba, CA: Police Defend Chase That Ended in Crash That Killed Eight (AP, KGPE)
• Seminole, OK: Driver Charged With Misdemeanor Negligent Homicide in Cyclist Death (AP)
• Bridgeville, DE: 11-Year-Old Boy on a Bike Hit and Killed by Pickup Driver; No Charges Expected (AP)
• Lewisville, TX: Road Worker Killed When Tire Comes Off Tanker Truck (AP)
• Morrilton, AR: Mom Who Crashed Into Lake, Killing Her Three Kids, Said to Have Been Drinking (AP)
• Memphis, TN: Four Dead in I-40 Crash (AP)
• Ripley, OK: 13-Year-Old Flips SUV, Dies; School Super Says Child Drivers “Not That Unusual” (AP)
• Washington, DC: Witnesses Pull Victims From Mangled Vehicles After Collision (CNN [Video])
• Atlanta, GA: Three Cars, Six Motorcycles in One Crash; Eight Hurt (AP)
• Owosso, MI: Prosecutor Drives Drunk, Crashes, Leaves Scene; Has No Plans to Resign (AP)
• Veracruz, Mexico: Bishop Loses Control of SUV, Runs Over Six, Killing One (AP)
• Baltimore, MD: Michael Phelps and His Escalade in Two-Car Crash; One Injured (AP)
• Fort Wayne, IN: Two Killed in Christian Rock Band Tour Bus Collision (AP)
• Miami, FL: NFL Suspends Donte’ Stallworth for a Year; Self-Pitying Tweets Ensue (Star-Ledger)
• Related: Reaction Belies Claims of Contrition (Fifth Down)
• Related: Judge Permits Stallworth to Train While Under House Arrest (AP)

Trends

• Gov. Paterson Wants to Get Tough on Drunk Drivers — Who Have Kids in the Car (News, City Room)
• Drunk Driving Arrests on the Rise in Lower Hudson Valley (LoHud)
• CT Post Readers: Reckless Drivers a “Menace”
• Columnist Calls for Cyclist-Motorist Truce; No Mention of Rage-Induced Gunplay (CT Post)

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