LI Man Gets Prison In Fatal DWI Crash That Killed Mom Of 3: DA

RIVERSIDE, NY — A Long Island man was sentenced Tuesday to five and two-thirds to 17 years in prison for a drunk driving crash — in which he was over three tines the legal limit — that killed a woman and seriously injured her three daughters, prosecutors said.

Christopher Montpetit, 37, pleaded guilty on May 20 to aggravated vehicular homicide, a felony, as well as misdemeanor charges of aggravated driving while intoxicated, and reckless driving, according to Suffolk District Attorney Timothy Sini.

At about 5 p.m. on Sept. 25, 2020, Montpetit was speeding along in a 2018 Jeep Cherokee northbound on County Route 83 in Farmingville and “rapidly changing lanes” when he struck the rear of a 2015 Honda Civic, which had become disabled in the right lane and had its hazard lights on, Sini said.

The Honda’s driver, Erika Bautista, 31, of Farmingville, along with her three daughters, were all transported to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment of “serious physical injuries” and Bautista died on Oct. 11, prosecutors said.

Montpetit refused to submit to a chemical test of his blood, and when the DA’s office secured a warrant for a chemical test of his blood, his blood alcohol content was .28 %, according to prosecutors.

Sini said the woman’s three young girls were left without a mother because of Montpetit’s “reckless decision to drive drunk.”

“Anyone who gets behind the wheel under the influence of alcohol or drugs is knowingly and willfully putting lives on the line,” he said. “There’s just no excuse for it in this day and age, and my office will continue to seek significant prison sentences for anyone who engages in this dangerous behavior.”

Montpetit’s attorney, Michael Brown, of Central Islip, said that when he was sentenced, “he accepted responsibility for his actions so that the victims family could find some solace.”

“He will make the most of his time in state prison and return a better human being and productive member of society,” Brown said.