Driver Charged In Deadly, High-Speed 2023 Rockville Centre Crash: DA

MINEOLA, NY — A man was indicted on charges stemming from a drunken, high-speed crash in Rockville Centre that killed his 23-year-old passenger, prosecutors said.

Samuel Gutierrez Orozco, 25, of Far Rockaway, was arraigned on Wednesday on charges that include second-degree manslaughter, second-degree vehicular manslaughter, second-degree assault, driving while intoxicated and driving while ability impaired by combined use of alcohol and drugs, Nassau County D.A. Anne Donnelly said.

The defendant was remanded and is due back in court on April 21.

“The death of Larry Josue Orozco Torrez was completely preventable,” Donnelly said. “Due to the alleged poor decisions by this defendant, a family is now without a loved one."

Gutierrez Orozco is represented by attorney Robert Schalk.

On the evening of September 17, 2023, Gutierrez Orozco was driving southbound on Peninsula Boulevard in Rockville Centre at a high rate of speed when he crossed over the roadway’s grassy median and into the northbound lanes and crashed into a tree, prosecutors said.

A Nassau County Police medic who was driving along Peninsula Boulevard shortly after the crash was flagged down by another motorist and responded to the crash. The medic observed the passenger, Larry Josue Orozco Torrez, unresponsive, Donnelly said.

A search warrant for Gutierrez Orozco's blood revealed his blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was approximately .12% about one hour after the crash. The sample also contained marijuana and cocaine, Donnelly said.

If convicted, he faces up to 7-15 years in prison.