Girl, 7, Found Walking Near Drunk, Passed Out Parents On Long Island Expressway: Police

LONG ISLAND, NY — A seven-year-old girl was found walking unaccompanied at the side of the Long Island Expressway and her parents were found unconscious nearby on Sunday morning, Suffolk police said.

Officers responded to multiple 911 calls reporting a young child walking unaccompanied along Express Drive North, between exits 64 and 65, in Medford, and two adults unconscious in a 2023 Nissan Pathfinder with the engine running in the same location at around 10:45 a.m., according to police.

Officers found the girl unharmed along the side of the road, and her parents, Victor Dominguez and Inosencia Hernandez- Barranco, were found in the vehicle intoxicated with the car running, police said.

The child was taken to an area hospital for evaluation, according to police.

Dominguez, 37, of North Bellport, was charged with aggravated driving while intoxicated with a child passenger 15 Years old or younger under Leandra’s Law, driving while intoxicated, and endangering the welfare of a child.

Leandra's Law is named for Leandra Rosado, 11, who was the passenger of a car driven by a drunk driver and died after it crashed. It is a felony to be charged under the law.

The mother, a 35-year-old from Central Islip, was charged with endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor.

Dominguez pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in First District Court in Central Islip and was released on $1 bail, online court records show.

His attorney, Katherine Fernandez of Uniondale, declined to comment.

The woman's court information was not available.

Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact 6th Squad detectives in Selden at 631-854-8652.