Woman Guilty In Drunken Queens Crash That Killed NYPD Cop: DA

QUEENS, NY — A Long Island woman has been convicted of aggravated manslaughter in the 2021 hit-and-run death of NYPD Det. Anastasios Tsakos, prosecutors said.

Jurors found Jessica Beauvais, 33, of Hempstead, guilty Tuesday after a trial detailing accusations she drunkenly plowed into Tsakos along the Long Island Expressway.

Beauvais' selfishness and recklessness left Tsakos' widow to raise their two young children alone, said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.

“Her license had been suspended, her blood alcohol level was at nearly twice the legal limit and she had smoked marijuana," Katz said in a statement. "The defendant had absolutely no business being behind the wheel."

The crash unfolded early April 27, 2021, as Tsakos responded to a fatal crash on the Long Island Expressway near an entrance ramp to the Clearview Expressway, authorities said.

As Tsakos stood at a road block, Beauvais sped through traffic cones and struck him, prosecutors said.

The impact flung Tsakos' 170 feet through the air and severed his left leg from the knee down, authorities said.

Tsakos died in a nearby hospital while Beauvais, who sped away, was stopped three miles away by a police cruiser that she hit as well, officials said.

Beauvais' blood-alcohol content two hours later tested at 0.15 percent, nearly twice the legal limit for driving, prosecutors said.

She faces up to 27 years in prison when she's sentenced Dec. 14.