1 Killed, 3 Hurt as Speeding Off-Duty Cop Plows into Them in Brooklyn: NYPD

The off-duty officer was charged with driving while intoxicated and vehicular manslaughter

What to Know

  • Four people were standing on a Brooklyn sidewalk when they were struck by a car driven by an off-duty NYPD officer.
  • One person died and three were seriously injured.
  • The off-duty officer, who was scheduled to report to duty hours after the incident, was charged with DWI and vehicular manslaughter.

One person was killed and three others injured early Saturday morning when they were struck by a speeding SUV driven by an off-duty police officer who was later charged with DWI and vehicular manslaughter.

Officer Nicholas Batka, 28, was speeding down Bedford Avenue in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn and lost control of his vehicle at about 3 a.m. near the intersection of North 8th Street, police said.

Batka was supposed to be reporting for duty at 7 a.m.

Batka's car jumped the curb and struck two men and two women, all in their 20s, police said. All were taken to local hospitals and three were said to be in serious condition. Their identities haven't been disclosed by police.

The person who died was a 21-year-old man, police said.

Batka flashed his badge at the scene as he tried to get out of his car, witnesses said.

He refused to take a Breathalyzer test, and was charged later in the day with driving while intoxicated, vehicular manslaughter, three counts of assault and driving on a sidewalk.

Batka joined the NYPD in January, 2015. He was assigned to the transit bureau Manhattan task force. He has been suspended from the force.

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