Farmingdale Man Gets 5 to 10 Years in Prison for February Drunk Driving Crash That Permanently Injured NYPD Sergeant

Toledo-Alvarado pleads to top count; Drove minivan into the opposite lanes of the Southern State Parkway

MINEOLA, NY - Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced today that Luis Toledo-Alvarado has been sentenced to five to 10 years in prison for vehicular assault and drunk driving charges after his car crossed the center guardrail of the Southern State Parkway into incoming traffic and crashed into a New York Police Department sergeant on his way to work.

Toledo-Alvarado, 42, of Farmingdale, pleaded guilty to the top count of Aggravated Vehicular Assault, felony Aggravated DWI, and Reckless Driving.

Rice said that at about 10:30 p.m. on February 8, 2009, Toledo-Alvarado was driving his 2003 Pontiac Montana minivan eastbound on the Southern State Parkway near exit 21 (Nassau Road in Roosevelt) when he lost control of his vehicle, jumped the center guardrail into oncoming traffic, and crashed into a Chevy Suburban being driven by off-duty NYPD Sgt. Greg Piquette. Piquette, a 24-year veteran, was on his way to work at the 100th Precinct in Far Rockaway.

Piquette suffered a fractured right hip, left femur, and a shattered right heel. He remains confined to a wheelchair. Toledo-Alvarado’s blood-alcohol content at the time of his arrest was .21%, nearly three times the legal limit. This is his fifth DWI conviction.

“Today’s sentence is just the latest tragic circumstance of what happens when people choose to drink and drive,” Rice said. “Sgt. Piquette’s life will never be the same because of the injuries caused by one person’s reckless decision. My office will continue to aggressively prosecute those individuals who endanger themselves and every innocent motorist on the road.”

Assistant District Attorney Matthew Lampert of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau is handling the case for the DA’s Office. The defendant is represented by John Bermingham, Esq.