Travis Dickerson pleaded guilty yesterday to speeding, driving without a license and while intoxicated for causing a crash that took the life of 9-year-old Ángel Salas on Long Island (NY) in the summer of 2022.
Dickerson, a 32-year-old Brooklyn (NYC) resident, was driving to 119 miles per hour with a revoked license and was intoxicated with alcohol and marijuana, said the district attorney Suffolk county, Ray Tierney.
The defendant pleaded guilty to driving his vehicle at “extremely high speed” in Long Island Expressway and crash into the back of another vehicle, killing the Salas child.
According to court documents and the defendant’s confessions during his guilty plea, On August 22, 2022, at around 1:49 a.m., Dickson drove a 2018 BMW 540i westbound on the highway at 119 miles per hour, while under the influence of a combination of alcohol and marijuana. Suddenly hit the rear of the other vehicle, without attempting to use the vehicle’s brakes before impact, the prosecutor said.
The boy, who was sitting in a booster seat, was in a car driven by his father, Bruce Koch, 49, of Deer Park. Both were transported to Stony Brook University Hospital, the boy in critical condition and his father in stable condition.
On August 24, 2022, the doctors declared that the child was brain dead and they finally took him off life support after they became arrangements to donate your organsthe district attorney recalled.
After the accident Dickson showed signs of intoxication and admitted to smoking weed. Authorities found marijuana on his personsaid prosecutor Tierney. A blood sample taken approximately three hours after the accident confirmed alcohol and marijuana in his system.
Juliana Salas, the child’s motherspoke yesterday with Patch.com after Dickerson’s guilty plea. “I don’t know why this is Angel’s legacy and why this is now my current journey,” he said. “All I know is that God is with me and He has been every step of the way. All I can do is make the best decisions and move forward in good faith. We cannot control the choices and actions of other people, least of all ourselves. We cannot erase the past. I hope people are inspired to make wise decisions, live soberly, and prioritize their family and health.“.
Dickson must return to court to receive sentencing on April 5. After his death the boy Salas saved three people with his organ donations, said a spokesperson for LiveOnNY“nonprofit organization committed to helping prolong the lives of New Yorkers through organ and tissue donation, and caring for families affected by donation.”
The authorities remember that there is zero tolerance towards drivers who drive at excess speed and/or under the influence of alcohol and drugs..
In a similar case, in October Jessica Beauvais was found guilty of driving drunk and high on marijuana when she fatally struck police officer Anastasios Tsakos and then fled the scene in Queens (NYC).
Traffic accidents are a great challenge in New York and In many cases the drivers flee. This despite “Vision Zero” road safety plan created in 2014 by then-new Mayor Bill de Blasio, who promised to make the city safer for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists with a goal of zero deaths for this year 2024. According to the NYPD, cyclist deaths increased 260% in the first six months of 2023 and 325% since the implementation of the “Vision Zero” plan in 2014.
In December Governor Kathy Hochul signed the “Angelica Law”, intended to keep drivers with prior suspensions off the road by charging repeat offenders who operate vehicles after committing five or more traffic violations that resulted in suspensions or revocations as a felony.
2024-02-10 16:11:00
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