Man Sentenced In Absentia For Fleeing Crash That Caused Pedestrian Brain Injury: DA

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — A man from El Salvador was sentenced in absentia to one-and-one-third to four years in prison for fleeing the scene of a crash that caused serious brain injuries to a pedestrian in Brentwood in 2022, Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney announced Thursday.

Juan Morales Guerra, 32, was found guilty of leaving the scene of an incident without reporting resulting in serious physical injury after he struck a pedestrian and then drove away without calling for help, exchanging information, or reporting the incident to law enforcement, the DA said.

"This is yet another tragic example of how so-called 'bail reform' has eroded public safety and accountability," Tierney said in a news release. "Despite the serious nature of the charges and potential for substantial incarceration, the court was compelled by New York law to release this defendant back onto the streets without any form of security. Unsurprisingly, the defendant soon thereafter hopped a flight to El Salvador in order to evade justice. While my office was able to proceed through trial and sentencing in his absence, it is a sad state that our legislators have enabled him to flee. We remain actively engaged with our federal partners, and we will not rest until he is returned to Suffolk County to serve his sentence."

Around 9:50 p.m. May 23, 2022, Morales Guerra was driving an Acura MDX southbound on Washington Street in Brentwood when he struck a pedestrian who was walking across the street, prosecutors said. He then drove away, officials said.

The victim was transported to South Shore University Hospital where he was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury that required an emergency craniectomy which has left him with debilitating injuries to the present day, authorities said.

Law enforcement retrieved video surveillance from a nearby residence which captured the
collision and found car parts along the roadway where the collision occurred, investigators said.

On June 8, 2022, law enforcement found Morales Guerra’s Acura MDX parked in front of his home on
Whipple Street in Brentwood, approximately a quarter of a mile away from the crash scene, prosecutors said.

The car parts, including a headlight found at the crash site, matched the damage that law enforcement observed on the Acura, authorities said. When interviewed by police, Morales Guerra admitted to driving the vehicle, hitting someone or something with his car, and then driving away, investigators said. He was then placed under arrest, officials said.

He was arraigned on Sept. 13, 2022 but released without any financial security because his crime is considered non-bail eligible under New York law, meaning prosecutors cannot request, and courts cannot require, any form of bail, Tierney said.

Following pre-trial hearings that were held in March 2023, law enforcement officials said that Morales Guerra had gotten on a plane and fled to El Salvador.

On May 10, 2023, Acting Supreme Court Justice Steven Pilewski issued a bench warrant for Morales Guerra after he failed to appear in court.

On March 25, he was found guilty after a jury trial held in absentia, the DA said. He was sentenced on Thursday. He was represented by Chase Brown.