A NY man has been charged with vehicular homicide in connection with a tragic road rage accident in Washington Township, NJ.

The fatal car accident occurred on July 1, 2012. According to Bergen County prosecutors, the suspect was behind the wheel of a Honda Pilot when he got into a heated disagreement with another driver. The other driver, a man from Saddle Brook NJ, was behind the wheel of a Chevy Tahoe.

The two drivers allegedly began swerving in and out of lanes on the highway, putting themselves and other drivers at risk as they shouted at each other through car windows.

Traveling with the suspect was a female passenger, whom he was reportedly driving to church. When the vehicles approached traffic that was congested, the suspect lost control of his car and then swerved into the left lane before finally slamming into the left guard rail. The force of impact from the car crash caused the vehicle passenger to be thrown from the car. She was treated at the scene and later rushed to a medical facility, but doctors were unable to save her; she was pronounced dead.

Now the suspect is addressing the criminal charges at trial in Bergen County Superior Court, located in Hackensack, New Jersey.

An accident reconstruction expert who is employed by the NJ State Police recently testified that one of the drivers in the fatal car crash was probably driving well above the speed limit and traveling faster than 75 mph prior to the accident. The expert witness looked at evidence from the motor vehicle crash site and determined that the suspect was speeding when he suddenly slammed on the brakes and swerved into a different lane.

The other driver in the fatal motor vehicle accident has already been convicted of vehicular manslaughter. He was subsequently sentenced to a term of incarceration of six years in New Jersey State Prison.

If the suspect in this homicide case is eventually convicted on the vehicular manslaughter charges, he would face significant penalties. As set forth by N.J.S.A. 2C:11-4, a driver who recklessly causes someone else’s death can be charged with a second degree crime. A conviction for second degree vehicular manslaughter could result in a sentence of 5-10 years in NJ State Prison.

To learn more about this case, access the NJ.com article, “Driver Was Speeding in Fatal Road Rage Crash, Expert Says.”