On Monday, a woman from Baldwin confessed to being intoxicated and causing the death of a 66-year-old man when she smashed her 2020 BMW into his vehicle at 96 mph last May. Jinaraya Khan, 33, was found to have a blood alcohol content (BAC) three times the legal limit after the accident. She pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide, second-degree assault, and aggravated driving while intoxicated.
Scott Freeman, 66, who worked at a local printing shop and was due to retire soon, became Khan’s victim when she crashed into his 2011 Toyota Corolla. Freeman was making a left turn onto Grand Avenue near his home in North Baldwin at around 5 a.m. on May 22 when the collision occurred.
“This is a tragedy that Scott Freeman cannot retire and enjoy his golden years due to this defendant’s reckless actions, driving at 96 mph while heavily intoxicated,” said Nassau District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly, adding that they are determined to hold accountable those guilty of drunk and reckless driving.
Khan argued that she had only consumed two mimosas before getting into her car and was rushing to her job at JetBlue at JFK Airport, which caused her to speed. She was tested nearly an hour after the accident, revealing a BAC of 0.25%, way above the legal limit of 0.08.
Khan’s lawyer originally inferred that she had the right of way and blamed Freeman’s driving for the accident, but retracted this defense later. He described the situation as tragic and revealed that Khan was accepting responsibility for her act. He also stated that Khan had no prior conflict with the law and her crime was the result of a poor decision.
The district attorney’s office proposed a sentence of up to 21 years for Khan’s crime. However, she is expected to receive a maximum of 18 years in prison at her next court hearing in March.
Traffic fatalities are increasingly becoming an issue on Long Island, with the frequency reaching its highest since 2015, spurred by the pandemic. In 2022, 243 locals died in car accidents, representing a nearly 30% rise from 2019. According to authorities, speed and drunk driving were major contributing factors, with fatal crashes involving speed and drunk driving increasing from 14 to 64 and 14 to 21 respectively since 2019. Khan’s estimated speed was 61 mph higher than the posted speed limit of 35 mph on Grand Avenue.
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