Drunk driver gets probation in death of good Samaritan who stopped after Yonkers crash
A Bronx woman whose drunken crash in Yonkers last year led to the death of a good Samaritan who stopped to help apologized to the victim's family Thursday — and thanked them for agreeing that she should be spared incarceration.
Eleni Castillos was sentenced to five years of probation for the death of Adrianel Ramos Leconte after prosecutors and the judge agreed that Castillos' background and legal issues regarding the chain-reaction killing did not call for a prison term.
"I'm sorry from the bottom of my heart," she told state Supreme Court Justice James McCarty as she wiped away tears. "I know my decision affected the family very bad but it affects me as well physically and emotionally."
Driver in Yonkers crash pleads guilty Drunk driver whose crash on Saw Mill led to death of good Samaritan pleads guilty
How did the Yonkers crash occur?
Early on July 1, 2023, Castillos was driving drunk with a friend's 5-year-old son in the car when she lost control of her 2016 Hyundai on the northbound Saw Mill River Parkway near McLean Avenue. She struck a guardrail on the right, crossed the three lanes and bounced off the center median before coming to rest back in the right lane.
Leconte, 22, was a passenger in a northbound car with two cousins. When they spotted the crash, they stopped to help. Leconte got out and was killed when a third car hit the Hyundai as he stood next to it. The third driver was not charged.
What was the aftermath in court?
A judge had upheld the homicide charge in the indictment. But because of the gap between Castillos' accident and the fatal crash, legal questions related to what specifically caused Leconte's death remained and Castillos could have successfully appealed if she was convicted at trial.
Castillos pleaded guilty in April to first-degree vehicular manslaughter and aggravated driving while intoxicated and was promised the probationary sentence. State Supreme Court Justice James McCarty on Thursday also fined her $1,000, revoked her driver's license for one year and ordered her to have an ignition interlocking device on any car she drives if her license is restored by the Department of Motor Vehicles.
Assistant District Attorney Adrian Murphy said the causation issues, the acceptance of the plea offer by the victim's family and the mitigation presented by the defense all supported a sentence of probation. He said that Castillos' behavior that night "that led to a tragic outcome appears to be an aberration."
Defense lawyer Christine Asch said Castillos is a single mother working two jobs to support her young daughter. She has undergone extensive therapy since the accident and Asch said her counselor has provided "glowing reports" about her ability to maintain a law-abiding life.
Leconte's family did not attend the sentencing.
Before speaking, Castillos, who turned 31 this week, looked back at her daughter in the gallery. She thanked everyone involved in the decision to grant her probation — the victim's family, the judge and the prosecutors. She said she knows that her decisions that night could have also killed the young child in her car but ultimately she knows that Leconte's family lost someone dear to them.
"I just really want them to understand that I'm sorry," she said.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Yonkers NY crash: Drunk driver gets probation in good Samaritan death
