Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Cy Vance

Cy Vance Nets Felony Conviction of Driver Who Killed Senior Shu Ying Liu

3:23 PM EDT on June 23, 2015

Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance secured a felony hit-and-run conviction against a truck driver who killed a senior in Hell's Kitchen.

Cy Vance. Photo: Manhattan DA

On February 5, 2013, Jack Montelbano ran over 69-year-old Shu Ying Liu with a private dump truck as Liu crossed 41st Street at Ninth Avenue in the crosswalk and with the right of way. The Times reported that Montelbano drove away from the scene though witnesses alerted him to the collision.

Liu, who reportedly once worked as a magazine editor in China, lived on W. 54th Street, near the site of the crash. She was pronounced dead at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital.

Police found Montelbano in New Jersey, where he lived and where the truck was registered. A prosecutor with Vance's office said Montelbano was "involved in a fatal car crash at that same spot several years ago," the Post reported after Montelbano's arrest.

Vance charged Montelbano with felony leaving the scene. Montelbano pled not guilty and was convicted at trial last Friday, June 19. The case was prosecuted by ADA Patricia Stolfi Collins.

To convict a driver for hit-and-run in New York State, prosecutors must prove a motorist knew or had reason to know an injury occurred. This is more difficult than it may seem. Under state law, “I didn’t see her” is not an admission of guilt, but a potent defense strategy. In another case brought by Vance, a jury acquitted the postal worker who killed cyclist Marilyn Dershowitz, despite video evidence showing the driver stop his truck after the collision before driving away from the scene.

Montelbano was convicted of a class D felony, which carries penalties ranging from probation to seven years in prison. He is scheduled to be sentenced in July.

Years before Liu was killed, Community Board 4 asked DOT to give people more time to cross at Ninth Avenue and W. 41st Street, an intersection with a history of crashes. Liu's death sparked renewed calls for DOT action, and the agency finally made improvements, including a dedicated pedestrian signal phase, last summer.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Thursday’s Headlines: Congestion Pricing Will Be $15 Edition

The proposed congestion pricing toll is $15 for cars entering Manhattan below 60th Street, the TMRB said on Wednesday. Plus more news.

November 30, 2023

MTA Bus Lane Cameras Will Zap Motorists Who Double Park and Block Bus Stops

If you love blocking buses and bus stops, it's time to get a new hobby.

November 30, 2023

Eyes on the Street: Long Island City Bike Lanes Are a Good Start — But More Needed

The city unveiled three new protected bike lanes in Long Island City, but advocates want more to fill in a neighborhood-wide safe cycling network.

November 30, 2023

Eric Adams’s McGuinness Blvd. Capitulation Did ‘Nothing’ for Pedestrians, Greenpoint Pols Charge

Mayor Adams's watered down bike lane redesign of McGuinness Boulevard failed to improve pedestrian safety, elected officials charged.

November 29, 2023

Wednesday’s Headlines: We Beat the DOT Edition

We beat the DOT in court after it rejected our FOIL request. Plus more news.

November 29, 2023
See all posts