Driver Of Drunken Crash That Killed 6-Year-Old Indicted: Nassau DA

MINEOLA, NY — A Freeport man was indicted for a drunken crash that led to the death of a six-year-old girl, prosecutors announced.

Jorge Bonilla Gutierrez, 18, was arraigned Tuesday on charges that include second-degree manslaughter, second-degree assault and two counts of driving while intoxicated. He pleaded not guilty.

"Katerine Hernandez was two days shy of her seventh birthday when this defendant, allegedly drunk and speeding, plowed his SUV into the car she was seated in," Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said. "The force of the impact propelled the vehicle into a tree and sadly, Katerine died shortly afterward at the hospital."

According to the charges, Bonilla Gutierrez was allegedly intoxicated and speeding when he plowed through a red light in West Hempstead. The victim's car, a Toyota Corolla, was stopped in the right lane on Hempstead Turnpike with the hazard lights on. The impact sent the car off the roadway and into a tree, while Gutierrez's Nissan Pathfinder flipped over several times, Donnelly said.

Bonilla Gutierrez slammed into the rear driver's side of the Corolla, where Katerine Hernandez was seated. The victim's five-year-old brother suffered a fractured spine, and the driver of the Corolla sustained multiple broken ribs, Donnelly said.

Bonilla Gutierrez was remanded and is due back in court on Jan. 22.