A man who police said did not comply with commands of an officer directing traffic last night on Pulaski Street was arrested for felony drunk driving under Leandra’s Law, according to a police press release.
Riverhead Police conducted a traffic stop of a 2009 Dodge Nitro on Pulaski Street near Columbus Ave after the operator failed to comply with the commands of an officer directing traffic at about 9 p.m. Sunday night, police said.
The operator of the vehicle, identified as Jose Molina Umanzoa, no age or address reported by police, was found to be intoxicated, police said. Molina was operating the vehicle with a 14-year-old passenger in the front seat, police said.
Molina was arrested and transported to Riverhead Police headquarters and the juvenile passenger was turned over to their mother.
Molina was charged with felony Driving While Intoxicated under Leandra’s Law and with Endangering the Welfare of a Child and was held for morning arraignment, police said.
Leandra’s Law, also known as the Child Passenger Protection Act, was enacted in 2009, is named for 11-year-old Leandra Rosado, of the Bronx, who was killed in October 2009 in a crash on the Henry Hudson Parkway in Manhattan. Leandra was one of seven children in the vehicle operated by a drunk driver. The operator of the vehicle was subsequently convicted of second-degree manslaughter and sentenced to 4 to 12 years in prison.
Anyone charged with DWI or driving while impaired with a passenger under age 16 is automatically charged with a Class E Felony, a crime punishable by 1 1/3 to 4 years in state prison.
Editor’s note: A criminal charge is an accusation. A person charged with a crime is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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