Incident location, Long Island
What Happened
An Elmont woman has been sentenced to seven to ten years in state prison for a deadly drunk-driving crash that took the life of a 65-year-old retired fire captain in the early morning hours of February 17, 2019, according to the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office. The sentencing was handed down on September 15, 2020, in Mineola by Judge Fran Ricigliano.
The crash unfolded at approximately 3:10 a.m. on Meacham Avenue in Elmont, a residential corridor in southern Nassau County. Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas announced that Julie Debrosse, 31, of Elmont, had been driving northbound on Meacham Avenue when her 2017 Honda Civic slammed into a 2003 Chevrolet Cavalier in the driver’s side door as that vehicle was executing a left turn southbound onto Meacham Avenue from B Street. The force of the impact was catastrophic. Debrosse, according to the Nassau County DA’s press release, was traveling at 88 miles per hour in a zone posted at 30 miles per hour — nearly three times the legal speed limit.
The driver of the Cavalier, Michael Saudo, 65, was pulled from the wreck and rushed by Nassau County Police Department officers to Nassau University Medical Center. He did not survive. Saudo was pronounced dead from injuries sustained in the crash, according to prosecutors. He had been driving home from his overnight shift at a bakery at the time of the collision. Beyond his work life, Saudo was a distinguished member of the Elmont community, having previously served as a Captain in the Elmont Fire Department Rescue Company. He is survived by his adult children.
Investigation following the crash revealed that Debrosse had been returning home to Elmont from a party in Queens when the collision occurred. A blood alcohol concentration test administered approximately 90 minutes after the crash registered a BAC of .14 — nearly twice the legal limit of .08 in New York State. DA Singas was unsparing in her characterization of Debrosse’s conduct: “Julie Debrosse was driving drunk at nearly three times the speed limit when she struck and killed an innocent man on his way home from work,” the DA said, as reported by the Nassau County DA’s Office. “Our condolences are with the family and friends of Michael Saudo as they mourn his tragic loss.”
Debrosse pleaded guilty on February 27, 2020, before Judge Fran Ricigliano, admitting to three counts: manslaughter in the second degree (a C felony), assault in the second degree (a D violent felony), and driving while intoxicated (an unclassified misdemeanor). On September 15, 2020 — the day of sentencing — Judge Ricigliano imposed a sentence of three and one-third to ten years in prison on the manslaughter charge and a consecutive determinate term of seven years on the assault charge. Critically, however, those two sentences were ordered to run concurrently, resulting in an effective prison term of seven to ten years.
The case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorneys Lisa Corso and Christopher Casa, both of DA Singas’ Vehicular Crimes Bureau. Debrosse was represented by attorney Nancy Garber, Esq.
Location & Road Context
The crash occurred at the intersection of Meacham Avenue and B Street in Elmont, a hamlet in the Town of Hempstead in southern Nassau County. Meacham Avenue is a north-south residential street that runs through a densely populated neighborhood, with a posted speed limit of 30 miles per hour — standard for residential roads of its type. The 3:10 a.m. timing of the crash meant that traffic was minimal, which may have encouraged the dangerous speed Debrosse reached before impact.
Nassau County has been a persistent hotspot for serious traffic incidents on Long Island. Our local database currently contains 437 recorded accidents in Nassau County, ranging from minor fender-benders to critical, life-threatening collisions. Drunk-driving crashes, particularly those occurring in the late-night and early-morning hours, represent a significant portion of the county’s most serious fatalities.
Investigation & Legal Proceedings
Nassau County Police Department officers responded to the scene of the Meacham Avenue crash on the night of February 17, 2019, and initiated the investigation that would ultimately result in Debrosse’s arrest and prosecution. Toxicology results, obtained approximately 90 minutes after the crash, placed her BAC at .14. Speed reconstruction placed her vehicle at 88 mph at the time of impact — findings that formed the evidentiary core of the prosecution.
Debrosse’s guilty plea, entered on February 27, 2020, resolved the case without a trial. The plea covered all three charges: second-degree manslaughter, second-degree assault, and DWI. At sentencing in September 2020, according to the Nassau County DA’s Office, Judge Ricigliano handed down the concurrent seven-to-ten-year term. Under New York’s determinate sentencing structure for violent felonies, the seven-year determinate assault sentence carries specific post-release supervision requirements in addition to the prison term itself. Senior ADAs Lisa Corso and Christopher Casa of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau handled prosecution throughout the proceedings.
Broader Impact
In New York State, a conviction for second-degree manslaughter in a vehicular context — particularly one involving a BAC above the legal limit and reckless speed — can carry a sentence of up to 15 years as a C felony. Debrosse’s seven-to-ten-year concurrent sentence reflects both the gravity of Saudo’s death and the circumstances of the plea agreement. For Nassau County drivers, the case is a sobering reminder of the legal consequences that accompany impaired driving: our accidents archive documents numerous DWI-related crashes across the county each year, but few result in both a fatality and the loss of a respected community figure like a former fire department rescue captain. For more on your rights and legal options following a serious crash, visit our Know Your Rights page.