NYC Man Indicted After Striking Woman At 'Illegal Car Meet' On LI: DA

RIVERSIDE, NY — A Brooklyn man has been indicted in connection with striking a bystander while performing dangerous car stunts at an illegal car meet in Patchogue earlier this month, Suffolk District Attorney Ray Tierney said Thursday.

Matthew Mitchell, 20, has been charged with one count each of first-degree assault, and leaving the scene of an incident without reporting, both felonies, as well as second-degree reckless endangerment and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, and reckless driving, all misdemeanors, the DA said.

He was ordered held on $250,000, $5000,00 bond, or $2,500,000 partially secured bond during the pendency of the case, Tierney said.

In a statement to Patch, Mitchell's defense attorney, Steve Politi of Central Islip, said he entered a plea of not guilty on all the charges.

"We are anticipating the receipt of various videos that the DA’s office claims will prove their case," he said. "As far as I am concerned, this appears to be an unfortunate accident. We wish the young lady who we have been told suffered fractures of her back, pelvis and legs a full and speedy recovery."

"Motor vehicle Accidents are an unfortunate occurrence in our community and across our entire country," he said. "The Suffolk County District Attorneys routinely turns a blind eye to the fact that not all accidents are crimes. We believe this is yet another instance of that occurring."

Tierney credited the county's police department's "quick work" for allowing the "criminal driver" to be indicted.

“Real life is not 'The Fast and the Furious,'" he said. "Earlier this month, a group of wannabe race car drivers from outside of Suffolk County thoughtlessly took over a number of our roadways, endangering lives, harassing our citizens, and even preventing an ambulance from passing."

He added: "These charges should serve as a warning to anyone who might think about engaging in similar conduct in Suffolk County. We will not stop until you are held responsible for your thoughtless and dangerous criminal conduct. The investigation of others involved in this alleged criminal behavior is continuing.”

On Oct. 6, at around 1:15 a.m., a large group of vehicles and people gathered at the Gateway Plaza in Patchogue to join in or watch people performing “doughnuts,” drifting, and other amateur car stunts, prosecutors said.

During the night, there were other locations throughout Suffolk and Nassau counties where groups of vehicles and people were performing similar stunts and driving maneuvers, and witnesses saw, recorded, and posted these stunts on social media, according to prosecutors.

One of the posts included a video of a 19-year-old woman who was standing in a parking lot watching the maneuvers, and the video depicted Matthew Mitchell strike her with the side of his white Infiniti, prosecutors said, adding that after she was struck, Mitchell sped away from the scene before police arrived.

The woman was taken to a local hospital by a friend and treated for a fractured femur and pelvis, according to prosecutors.

Suffolk police used social media posts to locate both witnesses and Mitchell, and on Oct. 15, detectives, with the help of the New York Police Department, found and arrested him in Queens, prosecutors said.

A review of his driving history allegedly revealed that his license had been revoked and that he had six suspensions on six separate dates, according to prosecutors. Mitchell is due back in court on Dec. 12, and faces seven years in prison if convicted on the top count.