Drunk Driver 'Used Vehicle To Kill' In Deadly LI Nail Salon Crash: DA

RIVERHEAD, NY — The man who crashed into a Deer Park nail salon in June has been indicted on 38 charges—including four second-degree murder charges—and "used his 5,000-pound vehicle to kill," prosecutors said in court Friday.

Family and friends of the victims of the Deer Park nail salon crash that killed four people and severely injured nine others gathered in solidarity at the Riverhead courthouse on Thursday during a scheduled court date for Steven Schwally, the driver of the SUV that plowed through the shop.

At the hearing, prosecutors said the investigation revealed that the morning of the crash, Schwally had purchased two 42-proof, 375-millimeter bottles of Montebello Iced Tea cocktail.

At a hearing in July, prosecutors said that Schwally's "toxicology report came back with a .17 percent BAC"—more than double the legal limit of .08 percent — at the time of the crash. Prior to that, Schwally admitted to drinking 18 beers the night before the crash, according to Newsday.

Investigators also found two empty bottles of the cocktail and one full bottle in his vehicle after the crash, prosecutors said on Thursday.

At Thursday's hearing, Judge Richard Ambro denied Schwally's Legal Aid attorney's request for bail and suspended his license.

If convicted, Schwally is facing 25 years to life in prison, Judge Ambro said.

After the crash, Schwally pleaded not guilty to the DWI charge and was held on $1 million cash bail, according to reports.

Following the hearing, District Attorney Raymond Tierney said that the investigation "reflects the defendant's depraved indifference to human life."

On June 28, Schwally, 64, of Dix Hills drove an SUV at high speed through the parking lot in front of 421 Commack Road, crossed over Grand Boulevard and continued through the parking lot of 794 Grand Boulevard, where he crashed the vehicle through the front window of the nail salon, Suffolk County police said.

At the time of the crash, Schwally, a Marine veteran, was reportedly living at the Motor Inn in Commack, according to ABC7.

The crash killed NYPD officer Emilia Rennhack, 30, of Deer Park, Jiancai Chen, 37, of Bayside, Queens, Yan Xu, 41, of Flushing, Queens, and Meizi Zhang, 50, of Flushing, Queens, police said.
On Friday, Renhack's husband, NYPD Detective Carl Rennhack solemnly attended the court hearing along with numerous family members of the other victims killed in the crash who told Patch they were still too distraught to speak of the tragedy.

In addition, the crash seriously injured Nicole Miele, 54, of Dix Hills, Ana Garcia, 53, of Bay Shore, Wen Jun Cheng, 35, of Bayside, Queens, and Michael Mehale, 58, of Deer Park, Carol Garcia, 23, of Bay Shore, Toni Saccente, 32, of West Islip, Krystal Rodriguez, 37, of Bay Shore, Nicole Saccente, 55, from Cape Coral, Florida, and a 12-year-old girl whose identity is being withheld, police said.

Hundreds of people gathered on July 2 to mourn the tragedy where grieving members of the Deer Park community placed flowers and photos in front of the demolished, and now boarded-up nail salon.

During the vigil, Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schaffer spoke to the crowd and assured grieving community members that "justice will be served" to ensure that the victims "didn't die in vain."