LI Man Convicted In Fatal 2020 Drunken Driving Crash

RIVERSIDE, NY — A Bellport man was found guilty Wednesday in connection with a 2020 drunken driving crash that killed a Westhampton Beach man near the 7th Precinct in Shirley, Suffolk prosecutors said.

Jordan Randolph, 43, was convicted after a jury found him guilty of driving while intoxicated, fleeing from police at an extremely high rate of speed, and slamming into another car, killing the driver, 27-year-old Jonathan Flores-Maldonado of Westhampton Beach.

Randolph was out drinking for hours in Islandia, as well as at a friend’s home in Mastic, and later that night, while extremely intoxicated, he got behind the wheel of a 2014 Cadillac ATS, according to prosecutors.

He was driving southbound on William Floyd Parkway, when the Cadillac swerved into the opposite traffic lanes at the intersection with Rose Executive Boulevard, near the Suffolk County Police Department’s 7th Precinct in Shirley, prosecutors said.

A police officer, who was pulling out of the precinct, saw Randolph reverse and then drive in the southbound lanes of William Floyd Parkway, prosecutors said, adding that the officer followed Randolph and tried to pull him over, but Randolph refused to stop and continued driving.

Randolph then made a U-turn at the intersection of William Floyd Parkway and Dawn Drive, and sped away from the police officer, prosecutors said, adding that as he continued northbound on William Floyd Parkway, the Cadillac smashed into a 2015 Ford Escape driven by Flores-Maldonado.

The collision caused the Flores-Maldonado's Escape to turn over onto to its roof, and thrusted it down the road over 500 feet, killing Flores-Maldonado with blunt force impact, according to prosecutors.

Randolph struggled with responding officers as they tried to place him under arrest, and he hurled profanities at Emergency Medical Technician workers trying to treat him, then later refused to submit to a blood test, prosecutors said.

A court-ordered sample, collected five hours after the crash, showed Randolph’s Blood Alcohol Concentration was .20 percent, which is over double the legal limit, according to prosecutors.

A search warrant obtained for blood that the defendant provided at Long Island Community Hospital about two hours after the crash showed his BAC was .23 percent, which is almost triple the legal limit, prosecutors said.

A search of the event data recorder in Randolph’s Cadillac showed he was traveling 137 mph just seconds before it crashed into Flores-Maldonado's Escape, which was operating at 45 mph, according to prosecutors.

District Attorney Ray Tierney said Randolph "made a series of selfish, deadly, and utterly reckless choices."

“When you get behind the wheel of a vehicle while intoxicated, you are not just putting your own life at risk, but everyone else’s as well," he said. "This defendant’s extremely misguided decision to continue to drink and then drive while intoxicated despite multiple prior DWI convictions, ended up costing Mr. Flores Maldonado his life. We will seek the maximum sentence allowable by law for this defendant, and will also continue to pursue tougher drunk driving laws.”

Randolph has a lengthy criminal history, including 12 prior criminal convictions, six of which are felonies, and multiple prior felony and misdemeanor DWI convictions, according to prosecutors.

He was convicted of felony DWI in both 2016 and 2018, and misdemeanor DWI in 2011, and in 2003, he was sentenced to six to 12 years in prison for felony criminal sale of a controlled substance in or near school grounds.

He also has prior convictions for felony assault from 1998, and attempted robbery from 1997.

At the time of the crash, Randolph had a pending criminal charge of circumvention of an ignition interlock device, which had been ordered installed on his vehicle during the sentencing phase of a prior driving while intoxicated conviction, prosecutors said.

The device requires a motorist to blow into to check for alcohol and can prevent the car from starting.

A jury convicted Randolph of aggravated vehicular homicide, manslaughter, second-degree assault and vehicular manslaughter, as well as aggravated driving while intoxicated.

He was additionally convicted of operating a motor vehicle with .08 of .1 percent or more in blood, driving while intoxicated, first-degree unlawful fleeing a police officer and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, as well as circumvention of an ignition interlock device, resisting arrest, and reckless driving.

When Randolph is due back in court on March 28 for sentencing, he faces 15 years to life in prison.

Patch has reached out to his attorneys, Joseph Hanshe and Kimberly Ball of Sayville, for comment.