Jury to consider indictment against man charged in fatal drunken driving crash in Morristown
After months of failed plea negotiations, a grand jury will consider an indictment against a Somerset County man who allegedly drove his sports car drunk on Route 287 in Morristown last year and crashed into another vehicle, causing the death of a former nurse weeks later.
Attorneys in Superior Court in Morris County on Wednesday appeared to be at an impasse in the case against Phillip Walker, 35, of Bernardsville, who in February was charged with vehicular homicide after the death of Diana Yannotti, 88, of Warren in Somerset County. A Morris County Prosecutor's Office spokesperson on Tuesday confirmed the decedent's name.
Walker, who appeared with defense attorney Michael Robertson, is also facing weapons charges after a gun and ammunition were found in his 2016 Porsche Cayenne following the Dec. 5, 2021 crash. Robertson said he was considering obtaining an expert witness, but did not disclose any additional details.
A grand jury will consider indictment within four to six weeks, according to Kelly Sandler, a Morris assistant prosecutor.
Yannotti died at Morristown Medical Center on Dec. 21, 2021 due to "complications of multiple injuries" from the crash, a medical examiner concluded. Records show Yannotti had initially suffered injuries to her face, chest and head.
Police responded around 5 p.m. to the southbound lanes of Route 287 for a report of a serious motor vehicle crash and found a 2006 Jeep Cherokee down a center embankment and a Porsche on the shoulder with heavy front-end damage.
An initial investigation determined Walker's vehicle struck the Jeep, causing it to leave the roadway and crash down the embankment, according to police records.
Walker was not injured; the driver of the Jeep and passenger, identified as Yannotti, were taken to Morristown Medical Center.
Officers said while speaking to Walker at the scene, they detected a "strong odor" of alcohol emanating from his breath and noticed his eyes were bloodshot, droopy and watery. Walker failed a field sobriety test, records show, and was placed under arrest and taken to police headquarters.
Walker refused a chemical breath test, police said. A court-authorized blood draw revealed Walker's blood alcohol concentration was .09%, over the legal limit of .08% in New Jersey, records show.
Police say while in the process of towing Walker's car, they found in the trunk a 9mm handgun, two high-capacity magazines and hollow point bullets. Walker's father told police he was aware his son had a gun but had never seen it, records show. Walker, who did not have a New Jersey firearms purchaser ID card, had relocated from Virginia and was not aware of New Jersey's gun laws, his father said, police reported.
Walker was initially charged with assault by auto and three weapons offenses. He was charged with a second-degree crime of vehicular homicide on Feb. 28.
He is expected back in court in July.
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Yannotti, who resided in Irvington before moving to Warren 25 years ago, was a nurse for the Township of Irvington and co-owned Reo Crab Pet Shop, according to her obituary. She also had worked at Bloomingdale's and volunteered for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
Services were held in December.
In May 2020, Yannotti's son, Stephen, the former acting police chief of Irvington, fought a 33-day battle against COVID-19 while at St. Clare's Hospital in Dover. The Daily Record wrote of Stephen Yannotti's recovery, which involved the use of a ventilator and dialysis machine to heal his kidneys before he was discharged with a clap-out by doctors and nurses. His wife, Rose, said that during the time her husband spent in the hospital, she found relief in being with her mother-in-law at home.
Lori Comstock can be reached on Twitter: @LoriComstockNJH, on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LoriComstockNJH or by phone: 973-383-1194.
This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: Morristown NJ: Indictment possible for man in Route 287 crash
