The Weekly Carnage is a Friday round-up of motor vehicle mayhem
across the five boroughs and beyond. For more on the origins and purpose of this
column, please read About the Weekly Carnage.
Karen Schmeer. Photo: Garret SavageFatal Crashes (2 Killed This Week*, 24 This Year, 5 Drivers Charged**)
- Pedestrian Karen Schmeer, 39, Killed on Upper West Side by Driver Fleeing Police; 1 Charged With Murder; DA Cy Vance Opens Query Into Crash (Streetsblog 1, 2)
- Bayside, Queens: Unidentified Pedestrian, Three Months Pregnant, Killed Jan. 12 on Union Turnpike; No Charges; Former Boss Wants Safer Street (YourNabe)
Injuries, Arrests and Property Damage
- Gothamist Newsmap: Unidentified Pedestrian Struck on Ocean Parkway
- YourNabe Brooklyn Blotter: Driver Charged With Reckless Endangerment for Buzzing Cop
- Brooklyn Heights: FedEx Driver Smashes Into Building, "Clips" Pedestrian (Bklyn Eagle, YourNabe)
- Morris Park, Bronx: Thief Takes Idling NYPD SUV for a Spin (News)
- Kew Gardens Hills: Cab Driver Caught After Hit and Run (Post [Blotter])
- More Post Blotter: Insurance Fire, DWIs in Staten Island, Queens
- Brooklyn: 61-Year-Old Charged With DWI After Belt Pkwy Crash (YourNabe)
Following Up
- No Charges From DA Vance for Howard Safir Hit-and-Run (Streetsblog, News, City Room)
- Killer Gets No More Than Seven Years for 1997 Houston Hit-and-Run, Fleeing Country (Streetsblog)
- Six Month Max for Speeding SI Teen Who Ran Light, Killed Man Waiting for Bus (Streetsblog)
- Friends, Family and Co-Workers Mourn Fallen Sanitation Worker Frank Justich (News, YourNabe)
- NYPD Says It's Cracking Down on Hylan Blvd. Drivers Following Death of Daniel Kelley (Advance)
- NYC and Miami Cyclists Ride in Solidarity Sunday for Slain Christophe Le Canne (Transit Miami)
- Laurel, MS: Civil Suit Begins in 2001 Death of Mets Prospect Brian Cole (News)
In the Region, Out of Town
- Two Staten Islanders Dead in VA, PA DUI Crashes (Advance)
- Cherry Hill, NJ: Small Plane Makes Emergency Landing on Jersey Turnpike (News)
- East Brunswick, NJ: Driver Flips SUV on Turnpike; Post Has a Laugh
- Northampton, LI: Driver Runs Stop Sign, Hit by Transit Bus; 1 Dead, Several Hurt (WINS)
- Vowing to Reduce Collisions, SFPD Chief Initiates Review of Bike-Ped Policies (Streetsblog SF)
- Los Angeles: Man Found Guilty of Murder Two in Rage-Induced Pedestrian Death (LAT)
- Lowell, MA: Truck Driver Crashes Into House After Choking on Fast Food (News)
- Actor Justin Mentell Killed in One-Vehicle Crash in Wisconsin (AP)
- Less Than a Year Later, DWI Killer Donte Stallworth Free to Resume Life as NFL Star (AP)
Other News
- Daily News Issues Half-Serious Call for More Life-Saving Traffic Cams (Streetsblog)
- Elmhurst Ped Summit: Docs, Not NYPD, Doing the Detective Work on Injury Data (Queens Chron)
- TLC Starts Enforcing Zero Tolerance Policy on Distracted Cabbies (Post)
- Truckers' Share of LIE Crashes Has Almost Doubled Since 2002 (WINS)
- Feds Investigating Prius Brake Failures (NYT)
- Insurers Say "Softer" Car Bumpers Too Expensive to Fix After They Hit People (T'Hugger)
- Texting Laws Tough to Enforce in Places Where It's Legal to Talk and Drive (SJR)
* Deaths reported or discovered this week
** Based on latest available reports
