Another Queens Senior is Mowed Down — Driver Not Charged

Another Queens senior citizen has been run down and killed by a driver, police said on Sunday — the second time this week a resident has been struck without charges to the careless car operator.

According to cops, Elou Rakhminov, 75, was crossing Jewel Avenue from north to south near 141st Avenue in Kew Gardens Hills at around 9:20 p.m. on Saturday when the 30-year-old driver of a Nissan Sentra moving eastbound on Jewel Avenue struck him. The driver remained on the scene, while Rakhminov was taken to New York Presbyterian Hospital Queens, where he died.

A police spokeswoman said it was unclear whether Rakhminov was in the crosswalk — but she also could not say if the driver was speeding, ignoring the traffic signal or was distracted by his phone, a passenger or loud music.

Police rarely provide such information, though it is essential data for understanding why New York streets have become such a killing zone this year. Studies show it is far more likely for a struck pedestrian to die if the car is exceeding the posted speed limit of 25 miles per hour — and studies also show that traffic lights are not a speed control device, but often encourage drivers to accelerate so they don't miss their green. The mayor has resisted calls to drop the speed limit to 20 miles per hour on residential streets such as Jewel Avenue.

Rakhminov was killed hours after 14-year-old cyclist Mario Valenzuela was killed in Long Island City and four days after a still-unidentified pedestrian was killed in Jamaica. Total road fatalities in New York City are up by 16 percent so far this year, versus last year.

But that only tells a bit of the story. Between January and August, 2019, there have been 9,259 reported crashes in Queens alone, injuring 576 cyclists, 1,554 pedestrians and 9,243 motorists, with two cyclists, 17 pedestrians and 22 motorists dying.

The number of crashes is slightly down from the same period last year, but the number of injuries is up close to 4 percent.

And never forget this statistic: There are roughly 160 reported crashes every single day in Queens.