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Dec. 22, 2023 By Bill Parry
A Long Island man was indicted by a Queens grand jury on charges of aggravated vehicular homicide, driving under the influence and other crimes in connection to a high-speed, three car-collision on the Long Island Expressway last month that left one of his passengers dead and two others unable to walk, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Friday.
Reginald Nash, 24, on Lincoln Avenue in Roosevelt, Nassau County was indicted on a 15-count indictment and faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted.
According to the charges, on Nov. 19 at approximately 4:30 a.m., Nash was behind the wheel of a 2021 Honda Accord traveling eastbound at a high rate of speed on the L.I.E. in Long Island City when he slammed into a crash barrier that separates the highway from the Greenpoint Avenue exit.
After crashing into the barrier, the Honda spun clockwise and struck a Toyota Rav-4 driven by a 44-year-old man that spun and hit a Kia Telluride SUV driven by a 51-year-old man.
Police from the 108th Precinct in Long Island City arrived on the scene and found the Honda Accord with extensive damage facing in 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.
All four women were immediately transported by EMS to Elmhurst Hospital. Mency sustained extensive head and body trauma and was later pronounced dead.
Carchi underwent multiple surgeries to her back and has since been discharged. She is currently unable to walk because of her injuries.
Ramos sustained head and body trauma and underwent surgery for a fracture tibia and is currently wheelchair bound. Cox also sustained head and body trauma. She was subsequently discharged.
Nash had a blood alcohol content of .12%, exceeding the legal threshold of.08%, according to the charges.
A search warrant issued by Judge Scott Dunn was executed for the vehicle’s black box which indicated the car was traveling at approximately 89 miles per hour five seconds prior to the fatal collision and that the brakes had not been engaged.
In addition to the aggravated vehicular homicide and driving under the influence, Nash was also charged with multiple counts of vehicular assault, manslaughter, speeding and reckless driving.
“When drivers make the selfish choice of getting behind the wheel after drinking, they not only put their own lives at risk, but they endanger their passengers and anyone sharing the road with them as well,” Katz said.
“When such reckless behavior is coupled with speeding, tragedy is often the result. We cannot reverse what happened in this case, but we will make sure that there is accountability for the senseless loss of life and the pain and suffering inflicted.”
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