A driver, Steven Schwally, accused of drunk driving and crashing into a Chinese-owned nail salon on Long Island, resulting in the deaths of four people, is facing charges including second-degree murder and manslaughter, among 38 counts, with a maximum sentence of 25 years.
Schwally appeared in court at Riverhead in Suffolk County, Long Island, on August 1, facing four counts of second-degree murder and manslaughter, along with multiple charges of vehicular manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter due to reckless driving, assault, assault with a vehicle, driving under the influence, reckless endangerment, reckless driving, and speeding, totaling 38 charges. If convicted, he could face up to 25 years in prison. Schwally pleaded not guilty to all charges. The judge ruled to keep him in custody until the next hearing scheduled for August 29.
The incident occurred on the afternoon of June 28, when Schwally was driving a Chevrolet Traverse at high speed and crashed into the Hawaii Nail & Spa in Deer Park, Suffolk County, killing the Chinese owner of the salon, Jiancai Chen, aged 37, as well as two female employees, Yan Xu, 41, and Meizi Zhang, 50, alongside another victim, 30-year-old off-duty police officer Emilia Rennhack. Nine others were injured, with several in critical condition. Following his arrest, Schwally told authorities that he had consumed 18 beers before the incident, but investigations revealed he had been drinking spirits, with his blood alcohol level at 0.17, double the legal limit. Prosecutors claimed that at the time of the crash, Schwally was driving at 78 miles per hour, with the accelerator pedal pressed at 99% and still accelerating.
64-year-old Schwally, a former Marine, had been arrested for drunk driving in 2013 and subsequently received three years probation after pleading guilty. In light of the potential 25-year sentence Schwally faces, New York State Senator Chunyi Liu believes it is too lenient. Liu stated that Schwally’s selfish and reckless actions had destroyed numerous families and advocated for him to receive a lifelong sentence behind bars.