What to Know
- A Long Island woman has pleaded not guilty to a charge that she was driving while intoxicated during an eight-car chain-reaction crash
- The crash happened around 10:30 p.m. Friday on the Long Island Expressway near Exit 49 in Melville
- Suffolk County police say the problems started after a car fire clogged traffic in eastbound lanes
A Long Island woman has pleaded not guilty to a charge that she was driving while intoxicated during an eight-car chain-reaction crash on the Long Island Expressway.
Newsday reports that 45-year-old Suzanne Butler was arraigned Saturday and released without bail.
The crash happened around 10:30 p.m. Friday near Exit 49 in Melville.
Suffolk County police say the problems started after a car fire clogged traffic in eastbound lanes.
In the slowdown, two cars collided. That crash spiraled into an eight-car pileup, including an oil tanker and a minivan that skidded and got wedged under the tanker.
Police say Butler, of East Meadow, was driving the minivan. She was taken to a hospital with minor injuries and later was arrested on a DWI charge.
Local
Five other people also suffered minor injuries.
