The Weekly Carnage

The Weekly Carnage is a Friday round-up of motor vehicle mayhem
across the metro region. For more on the origins and purpose of this
column, please read About the Weekly Carnage.

Editor’s note: Newsday is in the middle of a web site redesign. Some links may be broken. 

Fatal Crashes (11 Killed This Week, 74 Killed This Year*, 10 Drivers Charged**)

• Manhattan: Hit-and-Run Driver Takes Life of Harlem Mother (News)
• Queens: Driver With Suspended License Hits, Kills Motorcyclist (News)
• Wantagh Parkway, LI: Motorcyclist Kills Teen on Bike Path; Multiple Charges Filed (1010 WINS)
• East Shoreham, LI: Teen Cycling to Work Killed by Unlicensed Driver (Newsday, Gothamist)
• Newark: One Dead in Airport Collision Between Bus and Hotel Shuttle (Post, Star-Ledger)
• Newark: Officer Dies of Injuries Suffered in Off-Duty Motorcycle Crash (Star-Ledger)
• Newark: Pedestrian Struck Dead Trying to Cross Highway (Star-Ledger)
• Danbury, CT: Motorcyclist Killed in Two-Vehicle Crash (CT Post)
• Jericho, LI: Motorcyclist Ejected From Bike, Run Over (Newsday)
• Holbrook, LI: One Killed When Truck Rear-Ends Car on LIE (Newsday)
• Peekskill, NY: Pedestrian Struck on July 8 Dies From Injuries (LoHud)

Injuries, Arrests and Property Damage

• Manhattan: Public Endangered by Another NYPD Chase, This One With Shootout (News, NYT)
• Manhattan: Livery Cab Collides With Van, Crashes Into Flower Shop (News)
• Related: Pedestrian Narrowly Escapes With Her Life (Post)
• Staten Island: Pedestrian Struck in Front of Borough Hall (SI Advance)
• Staten Island: Woman Hit by City Bus at St. George Ferry Terminal (SI Advance)
• Staten Island: Pickup Truck Crashes Into Utility Pole, Injuring Driver (SI Advance)
• Plainview, LI: Ped in Parking Lot Hit by 88-Year-Old, Breaking Both Legs (Newsday)
• Tappan Zee Bridge: Two Injured in Separate Police Cruiser Crashes (LoHud)
• Harrison, NY: Newspaper Employee Hits Colleague in Parking Lot (LoHud)
• Dix Hills, LI: Two Hospitalized Following Two-Car Collision (Newsday)
• Freeport, LI: 18-Year-Old Arrested for Setting Fire to “Hated” BMW (Newsday)
• Mahopac, NY: Cops Taser Man After DWI Arrest (LoHud)
• Brewster, NY: Immigration Status Raised as Issue in Another DWI Case (LoHud)
• Mount Vernon, NY: Teens Charged for Throwing Rocks at Parked Cars (LoHud)
• Valley Cottage, NY: Five Hospitalized After Two-Car Collision (LoHud)
• North Castle, NY: Man Drives Car Into Reservoir, Escapes With Injuries (LoHud)

Following Up

• Brooklyn: Streetsbloggers Do Better Job Reporting the Death of Juan Sifuentes Than NY Media
• Queens: LI Man Convicted for Running Over NYPD Officer in ’07 (Newsday)
• Nassau Co.: Drunk Driver Who Maimed Cop Gets Seven Years (Newsday)
• Nassau Co.: Woman Who Says She Drove Drunk to Escape Attacker Acquitted (Newsday)
• Ossining, NY: Woman Questioned in Death of Man Hit Getting His Mail (LoHud)
• Two Putnam County DWI Moms Scheduled for Court Appearances (LoHud)
• July Marks 40 Years Since Kennedy-Kopechne Crash (Times-Leader)

Photo: AP

Out of Town

• Mount Pleasant, WI: Wienermobile Crashes Into House (AP)
• Besancon, France: 1 Killed, 2 Injured by Police Motorcycle on Tour de France Route (AP)
• Kasota, MN: Altercation Between Driver and Deputy Leads to Shooting Death (AP)
• Magna, UT: Gruesome Two-Car Crash Kills Six, Including Four Kids (AP)
• Colorado Springs, CO: Woman Gets Probation for Horrific Gas Station Death (AP)
• Leavenworth, WA: Actor James Caviezel Hurt When Man Throws Bicycle at Motorcycle (AP)
• Miami Beach: “Burn Notice” Actor Jeffrey Donovan Arrested on Suspicion of DUI (AP)

Trends 

• Dangerous NY Drivers Routinely Escape Punishment by Gaming the Courts (Streetsblog)
• Authorities, Motorists Turn Blind Eye to Dangers of Distracted Driving (NYT, NYT, NYT)
• Related: Study Finds Eating the Leading Cause of Crashes (News, Autopia)
• Related: Infrastructurist Tallies the High Cost of DWD, Higher Speed Limits
• Sensationalist Rail Crash Reports Scare Commuters Onto Carnage-Strewn Roads (Infrastructurist)
• Detroit, MI: Planners Study Deer-Involved Crashes More Than Bike-Ped Deaths (M-Bike)
• NYC Kids’ IQ Scores Affected by Prenatal Exposure to Auto Pollution (Post)
• Related: Mayor Bloomberg’s Idling SUVs Aren’t Helping (AP, News)

* Since the week of June 8
** Drivers charged for deaths since the week of June 8, based on latest available reports