What to Know
- An elderly woman behind the wheel of a sedan truck that killed a teen in a Queens crosswalk in June pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment
- On June 25, Madeline Shershen, 17, was crossing a street when she was struck by 88-year-old Sheila Kahn-Prager, police said
- Prager will serve no jail time, but agreed to assist in the campaign launched by the teen's family that urges retesting of elderly drivers
An 88-year-old woman who was behind the wheel of a sedan that killed a 17-year-old girl in a Queens crosswalk in June pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment in the second degree in connection to the deadly crash Thursday.
On June 25, teenager Madeline Shershen of Queens was lawfully in the crosswalk in front of P.S. 209 on Utopia Parkway in Whitestone, walking to meet her boyfriend when she was struck and killed before she could reach the curb.
An elderly woman, identified by police at Sheila Kahn-Prager of Queens, was driving southbound on Utopia Parkway when she hit the girl around 10:30 a.m. that day, according to police.
The teenager was taken to a hospital where she was pronounced dead.
Footage from the scene that June day showed heavy damage to the windshield and front hood of the vehicle.
On Thursday, the girl’s family, wearing yellow t-shirts to symbolize hope, were in the courtroom to hear Kahn-Prager plead guilty.
“I feel she took accountability for her actions, although we will never get Maddie back, at least she took accountability for her actions,” Shershen’s aunt, Rita Barravecchio, said.
Kahn-Prager has also agreed to assist in a campaign launched by Shershan’s family that aims to change the law by urging the retesting of elderly drivers.
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The campaign ensures “that people behind the wheel should be behind the wheel,” Barravecchio said.
Additionally, as part of the plea agreement, Kahn-Prager will serve no prison time.
