Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Feds: Westchester Runaway Prius Brakes Weren't Applied
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 19, 2010
Modified Mar 19, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 19, 2010
Modified Mar 19, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that the computer of the Toyota Prius, which crashed into a stone wall in Harrison, NY last week, indicated that the driver was not braking at the time of the crash. Apparently the computer showed that the car's throttle was "fully open," but the federal agency's announcement, which echoed findings from Toyota, annoyed the Harrison police chief.
In this incident, a housekeeper driving her employer's Prius accelerated down her employer's driveway, across a road and the road's shoulder, and into a stone wall. At the time, acting Police Chief Anthony Marraccini said that he did not believe the driver was at fault. Yesterday, Marraccini slammed the NHTSA's findings, "For any agency to release data and to draw conclusions without consulting with the law enforcement agency that brought this to light could be self-serving," and pointed out that the Prius's recorder only captured information at the time of impact. But he also said, "We are not discounting human error or driver error in this case."
The Journal News also reports that Marraccini was upset at Toyota because even though the carmaker had given him data from the Prius' black box recorder, it didn't provide the software needed to read it. Classic.
Tagged
acceleration
brake
Harrison
prius
runaway car
toyota prius
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Bronx man wakes up to a $39K nightmare after online meetup at hotel, NYPD says
Police say a man fell asleep and woke up to find his cash, car and phone missing.
By
Charles Lane
Published Nov 4, 2026 at 4:43 p.m. ET
Brace for bus and bike lane boom following NYC ballot approval
Supporters and foes of street safety projects agree that more of them are now on the horizon.
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
News
Brace for bus and bike lane boom following NYC ballot approval
Supporters and foes of street safety projects agree that more of them are now on the horizon.
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
NY appeals court strikes down Nassau County's ban on transgender athletes
By
Giulia Heyward
4 takeaways after Democrats’ big night in New York
By
Walter Wuthmann
and
Elizabeth Kim
NYC wins court fight over rollout of pied-à-terre tax on luxury second homes
By
Giulia Heyward
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .