MANHATTAN MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO ASSAULT AND RELATED CHARGES FOR A “ HIT AND RUN” IN WHICH TWO PEDESTRIANS WERE SERIOUSLY INJURED

Bronx District Attorney Robert T. Johnson announced today that Korey Bullock, 19, of Manhattan has pled guilty to assault and related charges for the January 2004 “hit and run” accident which left two pedestrians seriously injured.

Bullock, of 157 West 123rd Street, Manhattan, pled guilty to two counts of Assault in the 1st degree, one count each of Criminal possession of stolen property in the 4th degree, Reckless endangerment in the 2nd degree and Leaving the scene of an accident without reporting.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, State Supreme Court Justice Robert A. Sackett will sentence Bullock to a term of 15 years imprisonment when he appears on Thursday, March 10, 2005 in Part T24. The People had recommend that the defendant be sentenced to a term of 23 years imprisonment.
The incident occurred on January 19, 2004, near Bryant and Westchester Avenues. Police officers Michael Parchen, John Caruso and Ellis Deloren, on routine patrol in the 40th Precinct, spotted the defendant driving a vehicle with a broken tail light and missing rear view mirror. When they attempted to pull the driver over, the defendant fled and ran a red light on Westchester Avenue. The defendant lost control of the vehicle as he made a left turn onto Bryant Avenue striking Zanaida Rodriguez, 45, and her grandson Jonathan Garcia, 4, as they waited at a bus stop.

Bullock, according to court papers, got out of the vehicle and ran. Two of the Police Officers chased and apprehended the defendant. The impact of the crash nearly severed both of Rodriguez’s legs. Her left leg was later amputated and she nearly lost her right leg. Garcia was thrown 12 to 15 feet and wedged underneath a bench. He suffered lacerations to his face and spleen and lost most of his teeth.

Assistant District Attorney Adam Oustatcher of the Child Abuse / Sex Crimes Unit is prosecuting this case.