Following yet another hit-and-run fatality in Brooklyn last Friday, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez yesterday called for renewing proposed 2017 legislation that will crack down further on hit-and-run drivers.
The call to get tougher on drivers leaving the scene accidents comes after 70-year-old, Maria Lorente was struck and killed at about 1:30 p.m., Friday, Jan. 3 at Flatlands Avenue and East 78th Street in Canarsie, police said. Witnesses said the former cafeteria worker at South Shore High School was hit by a black Nissan Maxima.
“The tragic death of Maria Lorente should serve as a wake-up call to legislators in Albany. We must take aggressive steps to crack down on hit-and-run drivers. I was proud to champion legislation when I served in the state Senate increasing penalties for drivers leaving the scene of an incident without notifying the proper authorities,” said Adams.
Brooklyn Assemblymembers Steve Cymbrowitz (D-Sheepshead Bay, Manhattan, Beach, Brighton Beach) and Joe Lentol (D-Greenpoint, Williamsburg) sponsored the 2017 legislation dubbed the “Hit-and-Run Prevention Act” (A2721).
The bill would create a hit-and-run alert system, which would electronically distribute information on the suspect’s vehicle following a hit-and-run incident, allocate $1 million toward an anti-hit-and-run public information campaign, and increase the penalty for leaving the scene of a crime resulting in serious physical injury from a Class E Felony to a Class D Felony. It would also increase penalty for leaving the scene of a crime resulting in death from a Class D Felony to a Class C Felony.
“New York City has seen countless cyclists and pedestrians seriously injured or killed as a result of hit-and-run drivers. The Hit and Run Prevention Act will help bring awareness to the importance of staying on the scene of an accident, provide a mechanism to increase the chances of finding a hit-and-run suspect, and deter drivers from leaving the scene of an accident. This measure is about saving lives and I am prepared to work with my colleagues in Albany to get it passed. One life lost on our streets is one too many,” said Lentol.
Cymbrowitz said last week’s tragic incident underscores the need for stricter enforcement of hit-and-run accidents and an aggressive public awareness campaign about the penalties for committing this heinous crime.
“No family should have to suffer because of a motorist’s callous disregard for both the law and the sanctity of human life,” Cymbrowitz said.
Gonzalez adamantly conveyed his disapproval for the perpetrators of these “callous” and “cowardly” acts that leave someone to bleed and die in the street.
“Distracted, aggressive, and reckless drivers present a danger to those around them and, when they injure, maim, or kill, must be held responsible. The Legislature must pass the bill that raises penalties on these offenses without delay in order to close a glaring loophole and to send a message that we demand more responsibility and accountability from drivers who harm others,” he said.
This accident was the first hit-and-run to happen in Brooklyn year 2020 which followed a particularly deadly year for traffic crashes.
On September 22, a 47-year-old man was critically injured early Sunday morning by the Conduit Boulevard in Cypress Hills when a car sped out from the side and hit him as he tried to cross the road, according to media reports.
It was only six days later when police said 50-year-old Vabita Arjune was trying to cross Liberty Avenue in Cypress Hills when she was struck by a gray sedan. November 30th a hit-and-run driver killed a woman in Brooklyn early Saturday, according to the NYPD. On December 5th Miguel Hernandez was arrested and charged for leaving the scene of the accident after hitting and fatally injuring hit 21-year-old Ronald Nival in the Bronx.
Last year, there were 218 traffic fatalities in New York City, including 121 pedestrians and 28 cyclists. According to statistics from the NYPD, through September 2019, the most recent month for which there is data available, there were nearly 40 collisions in New York City in which the driver left the scene without reporting.
When asked why this issue has taken so long to address, Adams replied, “It’s a combination of things but mainly there is just not such a high level of emphasis on these traffic crashes. That has to change- If people are dying we need to see a different response.”
