Mineola, NY - July 13, 2015 - Acting Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas announced that a Glen Cove man is facing Leandra’s Law charges after being indicted for a drunk driving crash with his two-year-old daughter as a passenger.
Juan Martinez-Landaverde, 35, was arraigned yesterday on the following grand jury charges:
• DWI Alcohol or Drugs with a Child (Leandra’s Law) (an E felony)
• Aggravated Driving While Intoxicated (an unclassified misdemeanor with enhanced penalties)
• Two counts of DWI Alcohol (an unclassified misdemeanor) unclassified misdemeanors
• Endangering the Welfare of a Child (an A misdemeanor)
• Reckless Endangerment in the 2nd Degree (an A misdemeanor)
• Assault in the 3rd Degree (an A misdemeanor)
• Reckless Driving (an A misdemeanor)
Acting Nassau County Supreme Court Justice Patricia Harrington continued Martinez-Landaverde’s bail at $3,000 bond or $1,500 cash. He is due back in court on Aug. 12. If convicted of the top charge, Martinez-Landaverde faces a maximum sentence of 1-1/3 to four years in prison.
“It is incomprehensible that a father would risk the life of his innocent two year old daughter this way,” Acting DA Singas said. “The toddler was trapped, helpless and unrestrained in a car that crashed as a result of the defendant’s intoxication. The defendant’s actions put his daughter’s life in danger; thankfully fate spared her and the driver of the other car from serious injury or worse.”
Acting DA Singas said that on Jan. 28, Martinez-Landaverde was driving southbound on Broadway near Manhattan Drive in Jericho at dinner time when, while highly intoxicated, he crashed into another car stopped at a red light. His two-year-old daughter was unrestrained in the back seat. The male driver of the struck car suffered physical injuries resulting in an assault charge. The defendant and his daughter were uninjured.
Assistant District Attorney Steven Henesy of Acting DA Singas’ Vehicular Crimes Bureau is prosecuting the case. Martinez-Landaverde is represented by Daniel Lynch, Esq.
The charges are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless found guilty.