What Happened
A Queens man has been indicted on more than a dozen felony and misdemeanor charges stemming from a fatal crash on the Southern State Parkway in Elmont on December 14, 2025, that killed one man and left two others with catastrophic injuries, according to a report by Long Island Life & Politics.
At approximately 4:00 a.m. that Sunday, Deodat Ramotar, 35, of Queens, was allegedly behind the wheel of a 2012 black Hyundai Sonata traveling westbound on the Southern State Parkway during a snowstorm. He was carrying four passengers, including 58-year-old Ramash Boodnie, who was seated in the back. As the vehicle approached an exit ramp for the Belt Parkway, Ramotar allegedly began swerving at a high rate of speed, spun out in the snow, and slammed into a tree on the north shoulder of the parkway.
The impact was catastrophic for those seated in the rear. All three backseat passengers were ejected from the vehicle. Boodnie was killed instantly. The two other backseat passengers survived but suffered severe injuries: a traumatic brain injury, a fractured skull, a shattered hip and pelvis, and multiple internal wounds. Ramotar and the front-seat passenger were unharmed. New York State Police arrested Ramotar at the scene on December 14, 2025.
Blood drawn from Ramotar approximately two hours after the crash revealed a blood alcohol concentration of .09%, above New York’s legal limit of .08%, according to Long Island Life & Politics. Prosecutors allege he had spent the night drinking at a family party before getting behind the wheel of a car packed with passengers and driving into a snowstorm in the early morning hours.
Ramotar was arraigned on July 20, 2026, before Nassau County Judge Joseph Girardi on a sweeping slate of charges: Aggravated Vehicular Homicide (Class B felony); Manslaughter in the Second Degree (Class C felony); Vehicular Manslaughter in the Second Degree (Class D felony); Aggravated Vehicular Assault (Class C felony); Vehicular Assault in the First Degree (Class D felony); two counts of Vehicular Assault in the Second Degree (Class E felony); three counts of Assault in the Second Degree (Class D felony); Driving While Intoxicated Per Se (unclassified misdemeanor); Driving While Intoxicated Common Law (unclassified misdemeanor); and Reckless Driving (unclassified misdemeanor). He pleaded not guilty and was remanded. His next court date is September 2, 2026. If convicted on the top count, he faces up to 8⅓ to 25 years in prison.
Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly issued a stark statement following the arraignment: “What started as a fun gathering with loved ones ended in tragedy because of this defendant’s alleged actions. Deodat Ramotar allegedly spent the night drinking at a family party, got behind the wheel during a snowstorm with a car full of passengers, and crashed into a tree, killing 58-year-old Ramash Boodnie. This crash was entirely preventable and my office intends to hold the defendant fully accountable for the devastation he caused.”
Location & Road Context
The crash occurred on the westbound Southern State Parkway in Elmont, near the exit for the Belt Parkway — a heavily traveled interchange connecting Nassau County to the Queens border. The Southern State Parkway is one of Long Island’s primary east-west commuter arteries and carries high traffic volumes through the night, including in the Elmont stretch near the Nassau-Queens line. Snowstorm conditions in the predawn hours would have made the roadway especially hazardous, with reduced traction and visibility compounding the dangers of high-speed driving.
Investigation & Legal Proceedings
New York State Police made the initial arrest on the morning of the crash, December 14, 2025. The case was subsequently taken up by the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office, which presented it to a grand jury before securing the indictment that led to Ramotar’s July 20, 2026, arraignment before Judge Joseph Girardi. Ramotar was remanded — held without bail — and is due back in court on September 2, 2026. As Long Island Life & Politics reported, the DA’s office is pressing charges across multiple felony tiers to reflect the death of Boodnie and the severe, life-altering injuries suffered by two surviving passengers.
What This DWI Charge Means
New York’s Vehicle and Traffic Law §1192 establishes three tiers of alcohol-impaired driving offenses. Driving While Ability Impaired (DWAI) applies at a BAC of .05% to .07% and is a traffic infraction. Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) — the charge Ramotar faces — applies at a BAC of .08% or higher and is at minimum an unclassified misdemeanor. Aggravated DWI kicks in at a BAC of .18% or higher and carries steeper baseline penalties. Ramotar’s recorded BAC of .09% places him in the standard DWI tier, though the accompanying felony charges — particularly Aggravated Vehicular Homicide — reflect the fatal outcome and the number of people harmed.
For a first-offense DWI conviction in New York, a driver faces fines of $500 to $1,000, a minimum six-month license revocation, a mandatory ignition interlock device requirement, and up to one year in jail. Repeat offenses and felony-grade DWI convictions carry significantly higher fines, longer revocations, and multi-year prison sentences. Separately, any driver who refuses a chemical test in New York faces an automatic one-year license revocation and a $500 civil penalty under the state’s implied consent law — consequences that apply regardless of whether criminal charges are ever filed.
The felony charges stacked on top of the DWI counts in this case — particularly Aggravated Vehicular Homicide as a Class B felony — reflect New York’s framework for escalating punishment when impaired driving results in death or serious physical injury. That top count alone carries a maximum of 25 years in state prison.
Case Status & Updates
It is important to note that an arrest and indictment are accusations — Deodat Ramotar has pleaded not guilty to all charges and is presumed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law. The case will proceed through Nassau County criminal court, with the next scheduled appearance set for September 2, 2026, before Judge Joseph Girardi. Long Island Traffic tracks DWI cases through the Nassau and Suffolk court systems and updates each report as arraignment outcomes, motions, plea agreements, and sentencing decisions become part of the public record. Check back here for updates as this case moves forward.
Broader Impact
The death of Ramash Boodnie and the severe injuries inflicted on his fellow passengers are a direct consequence of the most serious category of DWI outcomes New York courts are designed to address. Aggravated Vehicular Homicide — the top charge Ramotar faces — was created specifically for cases where intoxicated, reckless driving kills someone, and it carries penalties that reflect the irreversibility of the harm. DA Donnelly’s office framing this crash as “entirely preventable” underscores the legal and public safety argument at the center of the prosecution.