DEATH DRIVER IS FREE TO GO
Judge agonizes over ruling as kin rage
A Suffolk County judge dropped all criminal charges against the limousine driver whose U-Turn into an oncoming pickup truck killed four young women touring Long Island’s wine country — enraging family members in court.
“How could you look at him and do this? He doesn’t deserve it!” one relative yelled out, according to reports.
State Supreme Court Justice Fernando Camacho ruled Wednesday that the indictment charging Carlos Pino, 59, with four counts of criminally negligent homicide was based on expert testimony that should not have been presented to a grand jury.
“The insufficient evidence presented, coupled with the grand jurors’ apparent confusion regarding the legal instructions, created a potential for substantial prejudice,” Camacho said in his ruling.
Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said his office will appeal. Pino is still being sued for wrongful death by the families of the young women who died.
In court, Camacho told family members and one of the crash survivors he is “so sorry for your loss,” saying, “I have agonized over this decision more than any other,” NBC New York reported.
One victim’s sobbing mother asked Camacho: “How can you do that?”
“If I am wrong . . .” the judge started to answer.
“You are wrong,” the mother interrupted.
“I would like the DA’s Office to appeal my decision, but I don’t think I am wrong,” he replied.
Pino was driving a limo with eight young women on July 18, 2015, when he made a legal U- turn in front of a pickup truck.
The driver of the pickup truck, Steven Romeo, was arrested on drunken-driving charges, but prosecutors decided he wasn’t responsible for the crash, arguing that drunk or not, Romeo’s pickup would have smashed into the limo. His DWI case is ongoing.
Pino’s attorney, Leonard Lato, argued that his client shouldn’t be held criminally responsible for the crash.
“It was a car accident, a collision where the drivers were at fault civilly,” he told The Post.
“The DA’s Office essentially misled the families and compounded their agony,” Lato told The Post. “If [prosecutors] do appeal, it’ll just be to mislead the families even further.”
“[Pino] still feels terrible because there were four young girls who died,” he added.
Robert Clifford, spokesman for the Suffolk County DA, said the limo driver’s actions were “far from just careless.”
“Pino was driving a vehicle he knew or should have known could never make a safe U-turn under the circumstances,” he said.