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Lisa Rooney, of Montauk, was sentenced on Thursday, Sept. 9 to three to nine years in prison for the crash that killed 28-year-old John James Usma Quintero, Suffolk County District Attorney Tim Sini announced.
The DA's Office said Rooney pleaded guilty on Friday, March 19 to the following charges:
- Aggravated vehicular homicide
- Second-degree manslaughter
- Aggravated driving while intoxicated
- Seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance
“Every single time you get behind the wheel of a car while intoxicated or impaired, you assume the risk that you could kill someone,” Sini said. “It’s reckless, it’s selfish, and it’s entirely avoidable. The victim was simply making his way home from work when his life was tragically cut short by this defendant’s actions."
At about 6 p.m. on Oct. 30, 2019, Rooney was driving a 2019 Chevrolet Silverado north on Flamingo Avenue in Montauk when she veered into the lane of oncoming traffic, the DA's Office said.
The DA's Office said Rooney overcorrected and drove onto the shoulder of the northbound side, fatally striking the Montauk bicyclist.
Sini said Rooney struck the guardrail and drove up on embankment before the Chevrolet rolled over.
The DA's Office said it secured a warrant for a chemical test of Rooney's blood. Her blood alcohol content level was found to be 0.18 percent about three-and-a-half hours after the crash, Sini said.
East Hampton Town Police also recovered a number of bags of cocaine near the Chevrolet, and a bag of cocaine on the floor of the vehicle, Sini said.
The DA's Office reported that a forensic evaluation found that Rooney had been driving at about 85 mph at the time of the crash.
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