Southampton Man Charged With Manslaughter After High-Speed Crash Kills German Au Pair: DA

SOUTHAMPTON, NY — A Southampton man has been charged with manslaughter after a February crash on Hill Street that killed a German au pair, Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said Wednesday.

Jacob Alegria, 27, was indicted Wednesday "for recklessly causing a fatal crash in Southampton Village in February that claimed the life of" the young woman, Spota said.

Alegria pleaded not guilty to charges of second degree manslaughter, first degree assault, second degree reckless endangerment, and reckless driving, a release from Spota's office said.

Alegria’s indictment was unsealed Wednesday morning by State Supreme Court Justice Fernando Camacho who set bail at $100,000 cash or $200,000 bond, Spota said.

“The black box in the Lexus the defendant was driving shows he hit the SUV in the oncoming lane traveling at a speed of 78.3 miles per hour – in a 25 mile per hour zone on Hill Street; more than three times the posted speed limit,” Spota said.

The impact of the collision sent the victim’s SUV careening into a tree; the passenger in the vehicle, Charlotte Meyer, 20, who days earlier arrived in the United States to work as an au pair, died of her injuries, Spota said. The driver, Luisa S. Keszler, 26, of Southampton, is recovering from serious injuries, he added.

Multiple witnesses indicated the defendant had previously executed a similar maneuver — crossing the double yellow lines into oncoming traffic — to pass slower vehicles just prior to the head-on collision, Spota said.

The Suffolk County District Attorney's vehicular crimes bureau and the New York State Police collision reconstruction unit, with the assistance of the Southampton Village Police, conducted the field investigation at the crash scene which closed the area to traffic for approximately seven hours, Spota said.

Southampton attorney Colin Astarita said his client was "somewhat foggy" after the crash, and thought the car in front of him had stopped short. After seeing a surgeon and a neurosurgeon, Astarita said Alegria has "a cyst, the size of a small grape, on his brain" and is now being treated with anti-seizure medications; he can no longer drive.

"We're not trying to create a defense, we just want to understand what happened. This kid has never had a ticket, never even been pulled over," Astarita said, in an interview with Patch. "He told me, 'Everyone knows I drive like an old lady. How does someone who's never had a ticket be driving so recklessly, 78 miles an hour, on a street he's been on so many times?" It was the medical condition that led to the crash, he said.

Alegria, Astarita said, had been to the bank to pay his parents' mortgage. "He wasn't racing off anywhere."

As doctors have explained, he said, what Alegria suffered was a "body mind disconnect. He's aware of what's going on but has no control over himself physically. We believe that obviously explains why he was driving the way he was."

Alegria, he said "is crushed emotionally," crying. He surrendered himself Wednesday in Southampton Village police headquarters and then headed to Islip for the arraignment, in tears.

"He told me, 'Regardless of the outcome of the case, I did this, I've hurt both these families and I have to live with this for the rest of my life,'" Astarita said.

Astarita said he's handled many fatalities. This time, he said, "This is the only one I can truly say I don't think there was anything he could have done. There was no alcohol. He was not drinking or drag racing. This was not an intentional act. This is extremely tragic."

Alegria said he'd had minor symptoms leading up to the crash but nothing serious enough to warrant a CT scan or MRI. "He has a very real medical condition he was not aware of," he said. "If he had known he wouldn't have been driving. It's just sad."

Alegria was released on $200,00 bond, his attorney said.

According to Southampton Village Police, a 911 call came in at 3:19 p.m. on Feb. 1 about a crash on Hill Street.

According to several witnesses, Alegria was heading west on Hill Street in a silver 2008 Lexus R35, when he left his lane of travel at an increased rate of speed and entered the eastbound lane, crossing over the double yellow line into the oncoming traffic and crashing head on into a 2015 Audi Q5, driven by Keszler, police said.

Keszler’s vehicle spun into a tree, where she was ejected from the vehicle and thrown 25 to 30 yards onto a lawn, police said.

Her passenger, Meyer, was removed by police from the vehicle; a doctor who was passing by stopped and administered life saving measures, police said. Keszler and Meyer were both transported by the Southampton Village Volunteer Ambulance to be airlifted to Stony Brook University Hospital, police said. Meyer later died, a Stony Brook University Hospital media relations representative said.

Alegria was transported by Southampton Volunteer Ambulance to Southampton Hospital; he was later transported to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment, police said.