A Long Island woman is facing a drunken driving charge after police say she drove the wrong way down the Long Island Expressway, crashing into an oncoming vehicle.
Nassau County police say both drivers were hospitalized with injuries that were not life-threatening.
Katelyn A. O'Connell of Westbury was expected to be arraigned at a later date on DWI and reckless endangerment charges. It was not immediately known if she was represented by an attorney.
Police say 22-year-old O'Connell was driving westbound in the LIE's eastbound lanes at about 5 a.m. Tuesday when her car crashed head-on into a vehicle driven by a 27-year-old man. He was not identified.
The eastbound LIE was closed for nearly six hours while police investigated.
The officer's father, Robert Menzies, was still in shock Monday night.
"We haven't seen him yet in this state that he's in right now, you know, lifeless," Menzies told NBCNewYork. When we see him in the upcoming days we're going to have a problem trying to stay calm."
"He was the kind of son that you would be proud of because he was doing what he was supposed to be doing and upholding the law, he said.
Bowen was ordered held on $350,000 cash bail at his arraignment, according to a spokeswoman for the Suffolk County district attorney. He was represented by an attorney from Legal Aid, which has a policy of not commenting on pending cases.
Menzies had worked for the New York Police Department for nine years and left behind a wife and two small children, ages 9 and 7. Tragically, he also had three older daughters -- 12, 14 and 15 -- with a first wife who passed away.
At the time of the crash Menzies was on his way home from his duty assignment at the Queens Housing Bureau.
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The accident comes on the heels of another suspected drunken-driving accident in which a 17-year-old girl was struck by an out-of-control pickup. She was expected to survive.
"This is just another tragic reminder of the deadly danger of drunk driving," Bloomberg said. "So make no mistake about it, we are determined to stop drunk driving now — before the holiday season gets into full swing. We don't want any more of this kind of carnage that we saw this weekend."
Police Commisioner Ray Kelly added, "On behalf of the entire Police Department, I express my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Police Officer Andre Menzies. His young children are left without a father as a result of a senseless accident in which a drunken driver drove the wrong way on a highway at night."
