Suffolk Man Gets 5 Years After Drunk Driving Crash Left Five People Injured Last Fourth of July Weekend

Rosario pleaded guilty to hitting cab with four passengers returning home after drinking

MINEOLA, NY - Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced today that Leonardo Rosario was sentenced to five years in prison on Friday after he pleaded guilty to charges for drunkenly crashing into a taxi cab and injuring five people, including four passengers who made the decision not to drink and drive.

Rosario, 34, of Bay Shore, pleaded guilty to two counts of Reckless Assault in the Second Degree, two counts of Vehicular Assault in the Second Degree, and two counts of felony DWI on December 9.

Rice said that at about 2:45 a.m. on July 5, 2008, Rosario was returning home from a DJ-ing job at the Sands nightclub in Lido Beach. He was driving his 2002 Ford Expedition eastbound on Sunrise Highway when he ran a red light at Merrick Avenue in Merrick and crashed into a northbound taxi cab carrying four passengers. The passengers were returning home after spending the Fourth of July evening drinking on a boat at a nearby marina. Rosario told police at the scene that he had been drinking vodka four hours earlier. His blood-alcohol content was .12.

The cabdriver sustained minor injuries to his neck and ribs, but the four passengers suffered injuries including a broken pelvis, fractured spine, broken ribs, and a concussion. In one case, a 29-year old man suffered brain hemorrhaging and was placed in a medically-induced coma for 17 days.

“This horrific scene could have been avoided if Mr. Rosario had simply made the same decision that his victims were smart enough to,” Rice said. “Had he taken a cab home, these five people would never have suffered so terribly, and Mr. Rosario would not be spending the next five years of his life in a prison cell.”

Handling the case for the District Attorney's Office is Assistant District Attorney Brian Murphy of the County Court Trial Bureau.Representing the defendant is Matthew Tuohy, Esq.