Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Woman Arrested In Suspected DWI Crash, 11-Year-Old Dead
By
Jen Chung
Published Oct 12, 2009
Modified Oct 12, 2009
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 Oct 12, 2009
Modified Oct 12, 2009
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
Early Sunday morning, a Bronx woman driving a 1998 Mercury Sable—carrying seven children, including her daughter, ages 11 to 14—crashed and overturned her car on the West Side Highway. An 11-year-old girl was killed and the Daily News reports, "Investigators said Carmen Huertas' blood-alcohol content was more than one and a half times the legal limit." Huertas, 31, was charged with vehicular manslaughter and drunk driving. The girl's father said, "I call this murder."
Huertas had been driving the overpacked car (many of the girls were not wearing seatbelts) from a party in Chelsea back to her home for a sleepover. According to the News, "She failed a Breathalyzer test at the scene and her blood was drawn at the hospital later, sources said. Her sedan swerved off the highway near the W. 96th St. exit, flipped over and rolled several times before slamming into a tree, police said."
Leandra Rosado, 11, a friend of Huertas' daughter, was killed after the crash and her father Lenny Rosado expressed his outrage to NY1, "She wasn't a responsible adult, responsible individual and a responsible parent, she wasn't...Her actions led to me losing my daughter and I hate to say while all the other seven ones lived, it took my daughter and I'm very mad about that, very mad."
The Post also says that, according to one of the car's passengers, Huertas jokingly asked the girls, "Who thinks something's gonna happen? Raise your hand. Who thinks we're gonna get into an accident?" And apparently all the girls raised their hands. One, 14-year-old Yismel Rosario, described the crash, "The car started swerving back and forth. I was like, 'Oh, my God!' Then it flipped over. Gisele, Kayla and Leandra flew out of the car. Their eyes were closed. I got out of the car and went to my sister, [Gisele]. I held her and said, 'If you can hear me, nod your head.' I told her it would be OK, that help is on the way." Gisele Rosario broke both legs and also underwent back surgery; one other girl was critically injured while the five others and Huertas suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Rosado said that his daughter had spent Friday night at Huertas' home and called him on Saturday to ask if she could spend another night, because she was having such a good time with Huertas' daughter Brittney Gonzales. The NY Times reports, "On Saturday, Leandra returned to Chelsea to pick up a change of clothes. That night Mr. Rosado dropped her off at an apartment on West 20th Street about 8 p.m. 'I gave her money, and she hugged me and said, "I love you, Dad," ' he said Sunday morning, wiping away a tear." He added that there needed to be stricter DWI penalties, "New York City, New York State, they need to get tough with this."
Tagged
Carmen Huertas
crash
drunk driving
dwi
fatal DWI
Leanda Rosado
vehicular manslaughter
west side highway
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
Upper East Side braces for affordable housing fast track, and backlash from residents
A new land-use approval process could make it easier for developers to build larger apartment complexes in one of the city’s wealthiest, most densely populated neighborhoods.
By
David Brand
Published Sep 29, 2026 at 6:30 a.m. ET
Plan to modernize NYC's diesel-spewing produce market falls apart under Mamdani
Bronx officials are scrambling to try to salvage a transformative project worth $650 million.
By
Elizabeth Kim
News
Plan to modernize NYC's diesel-spewing produce market falls apart under Mamdani
Bronx officials are scrambling to try to salvage a transformative project worth $650 million.
By
Elizabeth Kim
Central Park birders, others remember 63-year-old woman killed in park
By
Charles Lane
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
By
Liam Quigley
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
By
Arya Sundaram
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 .