Driver Charged After Inwood Sidewalk Crash Kills Two Men
Prosecutors said Leandro Diaz-Ramirez ran a red light at 59 mph in Inwood before a crash that city records say killed two pedestrians and injured five motorists at Sherman Avenue and West 207th Street.
What We Know
Joel Adames, 31, and David Fernandez, 40, were killed early on Aug. 3, 2022, at Sherman Avenue and West 207th Street in Inwood. The city crash record lists unsafe speed and records two pedestrians killed and five motorists injured. Police and prosecutors said Leandro Diaz-Ramirez, driving a BMW, went through a red light before the collision with a Subaru; prosecutors later alleged he was traveling 59 mph in a 25 mph zone. News accounts said the force of the collision sent the Subaru into parked cars and onto the sidewalk, where Adames and Fernandez were hit. Diaz-Ramirez was later arrested and indicted on manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and assault charges.
The crash began at the intersection and ended on the sidewalk
The crash happened just after 4 a.m. on Aug. 3, 2022. The city record lists Sherman Avenue at West 207th Street, two pedestrians killed, and five motorists injured.
Police and prosecutors said Leandro Diaz-Ramirez, driving a BMW, went through a red light at high speed before colliding with a Subaru. News accounts said the Subaru was then pushed into parked cars and onto the sidewalk, where Joel Adames and David Fernandez were hit.
Two pedestrians died after being taken to hospitals
Police identified the men who died as Joel Adames, 31, of Manhattan, and David Fernandez, 40, of the Bronx. amNewYork reported that paramedics took Adames to NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital and Fernandez to Harlem Hospital, where both were pronounced dead.
The official record classifies both men as pedestrians and says they were not in the roadway.
Records and news accounts describe a multi-vehicle collision
The official record lists a northbound 2012 BMW sedan and a 2003 Subaru SUV, along with three parked vehicles: a Smart sedan, a Honda SUV and a Mercedes sedan. The record lists unsafe speed and traffic control disregarded for the BMW driver.
Sources describe the Subaru differently. The official record lists it traveling west, while Gothamist reported that police described a southbound Subaru driver making a left turn. The Post also described the Subaru as headed in the opposite direction from the northbound BMW.
Speed and a red light were central to the case
The city crash record lists unsafe speed as a contributing factor. Prosecutors later alleged Diaz-Ramirez drove 59 mph, more than double the 25 mph speed limit, and went through the red light before the collision.
The Manhattan district attorney said Diaz-Ramirez was indicted on manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide charges in the deaths of Adames and Fernandez, along with assault charges tied to injuries in the crash.
Sherman Avenue had a record of repeated harm
The crash happened at Sherman Avenue and West 207th Street in Manhattan’s Inwood neighborhood.
CrashCountNYC’s location context for Sherman Avenue in Manhattan shows 239 crashes, 136 injuries, 8 serious injuries and 2 deaths since 2022.
Police made an arrest weeks later
Both drivers stayed at the scene, according to early police accounts. amNewYork reported that police arrested Diaz-Ramirez on Sept. 14, 2022, more than a month after the crash.
On Oct. 3, 2022, the Manhattan district attorney announced the indictment. Prosecutors said Diaz-Ramirez faced five to 15 years in prison if convicted on the top charge.