Amandeep Singh, the driver accused of killing two Roslyn Middle School teens in a wrong-way drunk driving incident in May, is asking to suppress statements he made while in police custody, according to court fillings reported on by Newsday.
Roslyn resident Singh, 35, was allegedly driving on the wrong side of the road at 95 mph with a blood alcohol count of 0.15 four hours after his arrest and cocaine in his system, Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in a press conference following his arraignment June 26. The speed limit posted in the area of the collision is 40 mph.
His truck struck the Alpha Romeo occupied by the four teenagers, all Roslyn High School boys varsity tennis players, resulting in the death of young tennis stars Drew Hassenbein, 14, and Ethan Falkowitz, 14.
Singh most recently appeared in court on Nov. 2 where he was offered a plea from Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly’s office to the top count of aggravated vehicular homicide within his 15-count indictment, which carries a sentence of 8-1/3 years to 25 years in prison.
He denied the plea and had until Nov. 22 to submit defense motions to the case or accept the plea.
According to Newsday, motions received Monday by the court from the defense signal the end of plea negotiations and set the stage for Singh’s trial.
Singh’s defense team is seeking to suppress statements he made prior to having his Miranda Rights read, a witness identification made of him at the scene of the crash and barring references at trial to his prior arrests and convictions, according to Newsday.
They are also seeking a court order to inspect surveillance camera footage outside of the Jericho firehouse.
Newsday reported that Singh’s defense attorney Edward Sapone stated in the motion that his client was interrogated by police for more than two hours before he was read his Miranda Rights.
Once read, Sapone said, Singh indicated he would no longer answer questions.
The motion also states that police video footage shows that police identified Singh as the driver of the truck in the crash within 15 minutes.
The motion states, as reported by Newsday, that Singh told a police officer around 11 p.m. “I feel like I’m being arrested or something, man.” The officer responded, “No, you’re just detained, you’re not under arrest.”
At 11:06 p.m. Singh took a breathalyzer that found him to be above the legal limit, his attorneys said. They state that Singh was then asked questions by officers about whether or not he had been drinking and if he was driving the truck.
“Because Mr. Singh was in police custody and had not waived his Miranda rights, all statements made in response to questioning, or purposefully elicited by law enforcement must be suppressed,” Sapone stated in the motion as reported on by Newsday.
Donnelly previously said that based on their investigation, Singh attended a party the afternoon of the collision where he was drinking. After that, he went to other establishments where he continued to drink, the DA said.
Singh was charged with multiple offenses, including aggravated vehicular homicide, assault, driving while intoxicated, driving while impaired by the combined influence of alcohol and a drug, reckless driving and a felony count of leaving the scene of an incident without reporting, authorities said.
He pleaded not guilty to the 15-count indictment at his arraignment on June 26.
He faces a maximum of 32 years in prison if found guilty.
