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Unlicensed Hit-And-Run Driver Critically Injures Woman In Queens
By
Emma Whitford
Published Dec 14, 2015
Modified Dec 14, 2015
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By
Emma Whitford
Published Dec 14, 2015
Modified Dec 14, 2015
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The 23-year-old driver who fled the scene after critically injuring a young woman in Far Rockaway on Sunday afternoon was driving without a license, according to the NYPD.
Denzel Watson, a Far Rockaway resident, was allegedly speeding through the intersection of Beach 19th Street and Seagirt Boulevard in a white Ford Mustang around 1:00 p.m. when he struck a 21-year-old woman. The Post has identified the victim as one Urabia Nelson, and reports that she was walking with her five-year-old niece London when the crash occurred. London was unharmed, but Nelson remains in critical condition.
"I saw her grab the kid and push her back toward the curb," a witness told the tabloid. "The driver didn't even stop, he kept right on going."
An NYPD spokeswoman could not confirm whether the victim was on the sidewalk when she was struck, as the incident is still under investigation.
Officers caught up to Watson at 1:37 p.m., near the intersection of Virginia Street and Empire Avenue. He has since been charged with leaving the scene of an accident with serious injury and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.
The intersection where the crash occurred has been the site of seven crashes so far this year, leaving two injured, according to city data.
A Transportation Alternatives report issued last week found that drivers who failed to yield caused 5,966 crashes resulting in death or injury in 2014, and fewer than 40 of them were prosecuted for it.
This year to date, 24 drivers have been charged with misdemeanor failure to yield for injuring or killing pedestrians, according to figures provided by the Mayor's Office.
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