DWI Cop Had Zero Blood Alcohol Level: Source

Officer mowed down pastor's daughter after boozefest, authorities say

NYPD officer Andrew Kelly's blood alcohol test -- administered more than seven hours after he allegedly struck and killed a woman while driving off-duty in Brooklyn early Sunday morning -- showed no traces of alcohol, said a law enforcement source.

Kelly, a seven-year veteran of the force, faces manslaughter and DWI charges in the death of 32-year-old Vionique Valnord, who was killed as she was trying to hail a cab at Old Mill Basin just before 12:45 a.m. Sunday.

 Authorities had obtained a court order and drew Kelly's blood at Kings County Hospital and the result was negative for alcohol: .00, said a source. 

Confusion at the hospital and a lag in notifying prosecutors contributed to the delay in administering the test to Kelly, who had been driving while off-duty, sources said.

Kelly and one of this three passengers, Officer Michael Downs, worked at the Yankees-Red Sox game at Yankee Stadium on Saturday in the Bronx before driving back to Brooklyn, where Kelly told cops he went to a bar, reports the Daily News. Then Kelly went to another bar, where he chugged up to eight beers, according to the paper. 

The NYPD veteran stayed at the scene to try to help Valnord after he hit her, while Downs and the two other passengers fled. Authorities said Kelly's breath reeked of alcohol, his speech was slurred and he refused to take a Breathalyzer test. He also refused to allow responding officers to draw his blood.

"I'm not going to let that happen," Kelly said, a source familiar with the incident told the News. "You're going to have to tie me down."

Kelly's stubborn refusal to be tested was the first roadblock in the investigation. The NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau called the Brooklyn district attorney's office at about 1:55 a.m. -- more than an hour after the crash. Cops proceeded with their interviews of the necessary subjects, and prosecutors called the home of Brooklyn Criminal Court Judge Joseph Gubbay, who issued a warrant at 5:30 a.m. to have Kelly's blood tested for alcohol, reports the News

When the 30-year-old cop showed up at Kings County Hospital – the same place Valnord was pronounced dead -- just before 6 a.m. he refused to give blood. The doctor on call wrongly thought consent was required to draw blood so didn't take it.

Kelly, who works in Brooklyn's 68th Precinct, will likely lose his job because of the incident, sources told the News.

Meantime,  Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the second officer was a passenger in the car and was suspended because he did not stay at the scene and identify himself. He was not identified.

"My heart is full of pain," he told the News. "I'll always miss her."
 

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