Drunk driver sentenced to 7-15 years in prison in fatal crash outside On Parade Diner in Woodbury
MINEOLA, New York (WABC) -- A Wantagh man was sentenced to seven to 15 years in prison in the drunk driving crash that killed a man outside a Nassau County diner.
Joseph Devito, 61, was struck and killed outside the diner on Jericho Turnpike on Wednesday, January 18, 2023.
He had just left the On Parade Diner and was saying goodbye to his lifelong friend.
The fatal crash happened at 2:32 p.m., yet prosecutors say 63-year-old Willem Specht was already drunk.
An ambulance rushed the victim to Syosset Hospital where he later died.
"Joseph was a husband, a father, a grandfather, and a friend to many. His family has endured immeasurable heartbreak because of this defendant's reckless and entirely preventable actions. Our thoughts remain with Joseph's family as his killer faces accountability for this tragedy," Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said.
After hitting Devito, the prosecutors say Specht continued to drive his 2004 Infiniti G35 in reverse and drove over another sidewalk, striking a ramp and a metal fence leading into the diner. He continued in reverse and struck the exterior wall of the diner.
Specht then drove forward and stopped his car in a parking spot in the direction where he originally came from. He exited his car, stood in the diner's parking lot for a short period of time, and then attempted to leave the scene but was stopped by a witness.
Specht was arrested on the scene by police once they arrived and he faced numerous charges. Police say his blood alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit.
Donnelly called Specht a "recidivist drunk driver with two prior convictions."
"During the course of this prosecution and against court orders, Specht continued to drink brazenly and publicly. Surveillance video even captured the defendant entering his local liquor store, buying a bottle of vodka, and uncapping it right in the parking lot at the same time he was scheduled and failed to appear for a court date in Joseph Devito's tragic death. Joseph was a dependable and compassionate man. Specht's irresponsible drinking and reckless choices robbed the Devito family of a husband and father's supportive presence. I hope that this defendant uses his significant prison sentence to reflect on the heartbreak that he has caused," Donnelly said.
Specht had pleaded guilty to second-degree aggravated vehicular homicide, assault, and aggravated DWI.
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