Alleged Drunk Driver Held Without Bail After Fatal Fourth of July Crash
Written by admin on July 7, 2024
The alleged drunk driver accused of mowing down 11 people at a Fourth of July celebration on the Lower East Side was ordered held without bail Saturday. Substance abuse counselor Daniel Christopher Hyden faces 25 years or more behind bars on three counts of vehicular homicide for the gruesome crash which left three people dead and eight others hurt.
Prosecutors presented compelling evidence, including photos of the damage allegedly caused by Hyden’s pickup truck. Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Matt Bogdanos, during the arraignment before Judge Robert Mandelbaum, displayed images of the carnage, stating, “That damage is from striking 11 human beings.”
Hyden, 44, appeared in court with a visibly swollen face, keeping his head down throughout the proceeding. Lab results to determine his blood alcohol content are still pending, as Hyden refused breathalyzer tests after the crash and allegedly kept his eyes closed to conceal his bloodshot eyes.
Hyden, known for his book “The Sober Addict,” had portrayed himself as a well-meaning substance abuse counselor and a positive example for those battling addiction. However, law enforcement sources revealed that Hyden had engaged in a fight with a bouncer at a downtown bar on Thursday night after being denied entry due to his intoxicated state. The bouncer refunded his ticket to the Fourth of July party and sent him away approximately an hour before the fatal crash occurred at nearby Corlears Hook Park.
According to the police, Hyden is accused of driving a gray Ford F-150 through the Water Street and Jackson Street intersection, plowing over the sidewalk and into the crowd celebrating the holiday in the park just before 9 p.m. Surveillance footage captured the truck speeding down the street without any signs of slowing down at the intersection. The vehicle jumped the curb and crashed through a fence, continuing its destructive path, sending sparks into the air as it hurtled towards the unsuspecting victims.
Tragically, the collision claimed the lives of Lucille Pinkney, 59, and her son Herman Pinkney, 38, who resided near the crash scene, as well as Ana Morel, 43. Among the eight injured were Herman’s longtime girlfriend Jessica Pellot and her 11-year-old son, Jakob Velazquez, who relatives say has been deeply affected by the loss of his father figure.
Hyden, a former New Jersey resident who currently resides in The Bronx, has a history of prior arrests in New York City and a lengthy rap sheet that extends to Wisconsin.
