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Two Years After Cop Killed Pedestrian, The DMV Is Finally Holding A Hearing
By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Jan 16, 2015
Modified Jan 16, 2015
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By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Jan 16, 2015
Modified Jan 16, 2015
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Bowing to pressure from a dead man's family, the Department of Motor Vehicles has finally scheduled a safety hearing in the case of Ryo Oyamada, the 24-year-old Japanese student who was fatally struck by a police officer in February 2013.
The hearing will be held on February 23rd, exactly two years and two days after Oyamada was killed by Officer Darren Illardi while crossing a street in Queensbridge. Though the DMV is required to hold safety hearings within one year of a fatal accident, the department had not scheduled such a hearing prior to now, and had no known plans to hold one until last week, when the Oyamada family and their attorney, Steve Vaccaro, requested it.
The family will be visiting the United States next month to attend a memorial for their son and brother. Their request was granted this week, marking a very small victory for a family that has yet to see an ounce of justice, let alone an apology from any city official.
Though DMV safety hearings typically rely on evidence from police for investigation and review, Oyamada was killed by a cop, and his family's attorney contends that the NYPD deliberately orchestrated a cover-up to protect one of their own.
"This hearing could be a complete travesty in which findings of the Internal Affairs bureau, which we disagree with, are ratified by the DMV," Vaccaro told us in an interview this morning. "Or this hearing could be opportunity for the family to put forth evidence it has independently obtained, showing the police officer was at fault and in fact reckless in killing Ryo Oyamada."
Vaccaro says the Oyamada family is prepared for disappointment, but know that the hearing itself is an important step for other victims of traffic violence. "Having seen this progress from the DMV, [the Oyamada family] is thankful and grateful that their request was granted," he said, noting that the DMV has had a history of putting off safety hearings. The family was inspired to request one after seeing the public response in the case of Allison Liao, a 3-year-old who was fatally struck by a driver also in 2013; the Liaos were finally granted a safety hearing earlier this month even after her killer's tickets were voided by the DMV.
"[The Oyamadas] understand there's a process of reform underway as to how crashes are investigated and these incidents are handled," Vaccaro says. "Hopefully this will help us with the whole reform process and Vision Zero process to have a hearing like this, even if nothing comes from the hearing," Vaccaro said, adding that the family also hoped to have a chance to "have a face to face engagement with the person who killed Ryo."
The hearing is scheduled for February 23rd at 9 a.m. at the DMV's Queens South Office, 168-35 Rockaway Boulevard in Springfield Gardens in Jamaica, Queens.
Tagged
darren illardi
dmv
queens
ryo oyamada
steve vaccaro
vision zero
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Rebecca Fishbein
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