Former College Dean Sentenced in Crash That Killed 2 on Meadowbrook

A former Suffolk County Community College dean was sentenced to four to 12 years in prison on Monday for striking and killing two men with his pickup truck on the shoulder of the Meadowbrook Parkway in 2013, Acting Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas announced.

Robert Beodeker, 52, of Aquebogue, was high on crystal methamphetamine at time of crash, which killed 76-year-old John Elder, of Freeport, and 65-year-old Edward Ross, of North Bellmore. Elder and Ross were standing with a disabled car on the Meadowbrook near the Southern State Parkway when they were hit by Beodeker’s GMC pickup truck at 12:30 p.m. on March 4, 2013.

“This defendant’s disastrous decision to drive while high on crystal meth resulted in the tragic loss of two innocent lives, John Elder and Edward Ross,” Singas said. “Though no sentence can bring back his victims to their families, I hope this top-count conviction and sentence brings some solace to the loved ones of these blameless men, who were stopped in a safety zone. This case highlights how there is no ‘safety zone’ when a driver is impaired and that the victims of these drivers are both random and innocent.”

Beodeker, who was on his way to work at the college at the time of the crash, pleaded guilty in April to aggravated vehicular homicide and driving while ability impaired by drugs.

Photo: ABC 7 report screenshot