Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced that a Far Rockaway man was indicted for manslaughter, driving while intoxicated, and other charges for a drunken, high-speed crash in Rockville Centre that killed the 23-year-old passenger in his vehicle.
Samuel Gutierrez Orozco, 25, was arraigned today before Judge Joy Watson on grand jury indictment charges of Manslaughter in the Second Degree (a C felony); Vehicular Manslaughter in the Second Degree (a D felony); Assault in the Second Degree (a D violent felony); Driving While Intoxicated, Per Se (an unclassified misdemeanor); Driving While Intoxicated (an unclassified misdemeanor); and Driving While Ability Impaired by Combined Use of Alcohol and Drugs (an unclassified misdemeanor).
The defendant was remanded and is due back in court on April 21, 2025. If convicted, he faces up to 7-15 years in prison.
“The death of Larry Josue Orozco Torrez was completely preventable,” said DA Donnelly. “Due to the alleged poor decisions by this defendant, a family is now without a loved one. My office will continue to prosecute individuals who recklessly put the lives of others at risk on Nassau County roads by choosing to drive while impaired.”
DA Donnelly said that, according to the charges, on September 17, 2023, at approximately 10:34 p.m., Gutierrez Orozco was driving southbound on Peninsula Boulevard in Rockville Centre at a high rate of speed when he crossed over the roadway’s grassy median and into the northbound lanes and crashed into a tree.
A Nassau County Police medic who was driving along Peninsula Boulevard shortly after the crash was flagged down by another motorist and responded to the crash. The medic observed the passenger, Larry Josue Orozco Torrez, unresponsive.
Orozco Torrez was pronounced deceased at the scene at approximately 10:52 p.m.
Additional NCPD officers arrived at the scene and removed the defendant from his vehicle. The defendant was transported to NYU Langone Long Island Hospital and treated for his injuries.
A search warrant for the defendant’s blood revealed the defendant’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was approximately .12% about one hour after the crash. The sample also contained marijuana and cocaine.
The defendant was arrested on April 15, 2025, by members of the Nassau County Police Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Russell of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau under the supervision of Bureau Chief Michael Bushwack and under the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for the Litigation Division Kevin Higgins. The defendant is represented by Robert Schalk, Esq.
The charges are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless found guilty.