Nassau County resident Rginald Nash pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide and other crimes for causing a fatal collision on the Long Island Expressway in November 2023. Photo via Getty Images
May 30, 2025 By Bill Parry
A Nassau County man pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide and assault for causing a high-speed, three-car chain-reaction collision on the Long Island Expressway that left one of his passengers dead and three others seriously injured in November 2023.
Reginald Nash, 26, of Lincoln Avenue in Roosevelt, admitted Thursday in Queens Supreme Court that he was driving at approximately 89 miles per hour, with alcohol in his system, when he slammed into an exit barrier near Greenpoint Avenue between Sunnyside and Blissville and spun out of control leading to the pile up that left his sister seriously injured.
“The defendant caused a horrific three-vehicle crash that killed one of his passengers and left three others with serious injuries that required surgery,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said.
According to the charges and the indictment, on Nov. 19, 2023, at approximately 4:30 a.m., Nash was behind the wheel of a 2021 Honda Accord speeding eastbound on the L.I.E. when he crashed into a highway attenuator separating the highway from the Greenpoint Avenue exit. After striking the barrier, the Honda spun clockwise and struck a Toyota Rav-4 driven by a 44-year-old man, which spun and hit a Kia Telluride SUV driven by a 51-year-old man. The drivers of the two other vehicles were not injured.
Nash admitted he was speeding on the highway after drinking when he caused the crash near the Greenpoint Avenue exit of the L.I.E. between Blissville and Sunnyside, killing one man and injuring three others, including loved ones. Via Google Maps
Police from the 108th Precinct in Long Island City arrived on the scene and found the Honda Accord with extensive damage facing the wrong direction. Cameron Mency, 23, a passenger in the Honda, was observed lying on the left lane of the highway approximately 90 feet from the car. She was unresponsive. Officers found Nash near the bumper of the vehicle attending to Giselle Carchi, his 22-year-old fiancée, who was unconscious.
Two other passengers in Nash’s car, his sister Tiffany Cox, 36, and Crystal Ramos, 22, were both lying next to the driver’s side of the vehicle. EMS responded to the scene and rushed all four women to Elmhurst Hospital. Mency sustained extensive head and body trauma and was pronounced dead a short while later. Carchi had serious injuries and underwent multiple surgeries to her back. Ramos sustained head and body trauma and underwent surgery for a fractured tibia. She has not regained full mobility. Cox also sustained head and body trauma.
According to the investigation, Nash had a blood alcohol content of .12%, exceeding the legal threshold of.08%.
A search warrant was executed for the vehicle’s black box, which indicated the car was traveling at approximately 89 miles per hour five seconds before the fatal collision and that the brakes had not been engaged.
“When drivers make the selfish choice to get behind the wheel after drinking and then speeding recklessly down a highway, they put countless lives at risk — including the lives of their own friends and family,” Katz said. “With this plea, we are ensuring accountability for the senseless loss of life and the pain and suffering inflicted.”
Nash pleaded guilty before Queens Supreme Court Justice Michael Hartofilis, who ordered him to return to court for sentencing on July 23, when Nash is expected to be sentenced to 7 to 21 years in prison.
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