DA: Driver in Quadruple Fatal Cutchogue Crash Had BAC Level Under Legal Limit

Steven Romeo, the Peconic man charged with DWI after the crash between a pickup truck and a limo that killed four young women in Cutchogue last Saturday, had a blood alcohol level of .066 as measured an hour and 40 minutes after the crash, Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said at a press conference Friday.

“Standing alone, it would be driving while impaired,” Spota said, according to The Suffolk Times.

While the number is less than the legal limit of .08, Spota said there are no plans to reduce the original misdemeanor charge for DWI.

According to the DA, Romeo was not given a breathalyzer test at the scene of the crash since responders were treating the injured passengers and limo driver.

Spota said that that Romeo’s BAC level could have been above .08. at the time of the crash considering the delay in measuring his BAC, according to SoutholdLocal.

The investigation is still ongoing, and Spota said that several factors still under consideration include speed of both vehicles, reconstruction of the accident scene, whether or not there were drugs in Romeo’s blood, cell phone information for both Romeo and the limo driver, and interviews with witnesses who have come forward as recently as this morning, according to multiple reports.

“We have an emerging, but not complete picture,” he said, according to The Suffolk Times.

Romeo is still at Eastern Long Island Hospital in Greenport with a broken nose and might not be released for a few more days, Spota said according to multiple reports.

His next court date, which was originally scheduled for Friday, will take place on September 18.

Four women were killed in the crash on Route 48: Lauren Baruch, 24, of Smithtown; Brittany Schulman, 23, of Smithtown; Amy Grabina, 23, of Commack; and Stephanie Belli, 23, of Kings Park. Spota said earlier this week that a witness claims he saw the limo driver turn right in front of Romeo’s truck while making a U-turn.