The author of “The Sober Addict” and substance abuse counselor plowed into a group of people at a New York park celebrating Independence Day.
According to the New York Post, Daniel Hyden, 44, drove his Ford F-150 pickup truck into a crowd of people at Corlears Hook Park off Water Street on July 4.
Hyden was speeding down Water Street and ran a stop sign, where his vehicle ended up in a group of celebrants. He struck 11 people, with four trapped beneath the vehicle.
Four people died as a result of his horrific actions. Lucille Pinkney, 59, and her son Herman Pinkney, 38, died that day. Ana Morel, 43, passed away on July 5, and Emily Ruiz, 30, died four days later. Seven others suffered non-life-threatening injuries. The youngest victim was 11, according to prosecutors.
Emily Ruiz was one of the victims trapped under Hyden’s vehicle. Her son, Kal-El, 6, named after Superman’s given name, rushed to try and save his mom, his real-life hero, his grandmother told The Post.
Kal-El Ruiz ran to his aunt’s apartment across the street from the park to get his first aid kit to help his mother. “He said, ‘I’m going to get bandages for mom,’ and he took the first aid kit that his mom had for him,” Kal-El’s grandma Liliana Ruiz recalled.
Emily was rushed to Bellevue Hospital and died four days later after being removed from life support. Her heart, lungs, and kidneys helped save the lives of four people in New York and Florida who were in need of transplants, said LiveOnNY CEO Leonard Achan.
Lucille and Herman were two other victims of the tragedy. They both died at the crash site. The Pinkneys’ friends and family were passionate about the loss of their loved ones, according to Freedom News TV.
“You killed my fing cousin, yo, you killed my aunt! You fing b**d, I hope you fing die!” a relative of the deceased yelled at Hyden.
Another relative and sister to Lucille yelled, “You killed them for nothing, nothing! Remember their fing names, Lucille and Herman Pinkney. You fing b*****d!”
CBS reports Hyden’s charges include aggravated vehicular homicide, vehicular manslaughter, assault, and driving while intoxicated. At the time of the accident, he was driving on a suspended license, according to prosecutors.
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[Feature Photo via NYPD]
