One Critical After Saw Mill Rollover

Patrick Murphy, 25, of Orange County was charged with Vehicular Assault and DWI just after 3:30 a.m. Sunday following a rollover accident on the northbound Saw Mill River Parkway in Irvington, County Police said.

While Murphy and a female passenger escaped the crash virtually unscathed, a third passenger--Luis M. Baglietto, 23, of Greenwich, Conn.--sustained critical injuries and remains at the Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla.

"It would appear that Murphy and the other unhurt passenger were wearing seat belts, but Baglietto was not," Kieran O'Leary, a public affairs representative for Westchester County Police, said today.  "Though we don't know for sure, it would appear that way because he was ejected from the vehicle during the rollover."

Murphy, of Highland Mills, N.Y., is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon in Irvington Village Court.

Vehicular Assault Second Degree is a felony and DWI is a misdemeanor. In addition, Murphy was issued summonses for speeding and making an unsafe lane change.

Despite a a recent fatal accident on the southbound Saw Mill in Irvington, in which a 38-year-old Yonkers man  veered off the road and struck a boulder, County Police does not believe the road conditions can be blamed for the two accidents.  

"The May crash is still under investigation," O' Leary said. "But we are pretty sure he fell asleep at the wheel. In this case there was alcohol involved--and both involved speeding."

Because the Saw Mill River Parkway is a state- operated road, any engineering changes must be funded and carried out by New York State.

"Because we police this stretch of the road we work together with the State to recommend and implement legal or engineering changes," O'Leary said.  One such change was barring a left turn from the old La Cantena Restaurant parking lot.  

O 'Leary said: "That change went into effect years ago, and accident rates have definitely dropped."