Land Rover Driver Fatally Injures Pedestrian on York Avenue
A 72-year-old Land Rover driver hit Sophia d'Antoine at York Avenue and East 87th Street, where the official record lists one pedestrian death and two motorist injuries.
What We Know
Police told the New York Post that a 72-year-old Land Rover driver hit Sophia d'Antoine, 30, as she crossed York Avenue at East 87th Street on April 2, 2024. The official crash record lists one pedestrian death and two motorist injuries at the intersection. The Post reported that d'Antoine, founder of Margin Research, was taken to Weill Cornell Medical Center in critical condition and died three days later. The official vehicle record lists unsafe speed for the northbound Land Rover entry; it records the Land Rover as a sedan, while the Post described it as a speeding Land Rover SUV.
A crossing on York Avenue became a fatal crash scene
The crash happened around 9:28 p.m. on April 2, 2024, at York Avenue and East 87th Street in Manhattan. The official record lists one pedestrian killed and two motorists injured.
Police told the New York Post that d'Antoine was crossing York Avenue when a 72-year-old Land Rover driver hit her. Police said the Land Rover driver and a taxi driver then collided head-on, and the impact sent the taxi into a parked, unoccupied Ford Explorer SUV.
Sophia d'Antoine died after several days in critical condition
The Post identified the pedestrian as Sophia d'Antoine, 30, founder of the cybersecurity research firm Margin Research. The article reported that she lived on East 87th Street about half a block from the crash location.
D'Antoine was taken to Weill Cornell Medical Center in critical condition and died three days after the crash, according to the Post. The taxi driver, identified in the article as a 62-year-old man, was taken to NYC Health + Hospitals Elmhurst in stable condition.
Records differ on how the Land Rover was described
The official vehicle entries include a 2017 Land Rover recorded as a sedan traveling north, a 2022 Kia recorded as a sedan traveling south, and a parked 2022 Ford SUV. The Post described the Land Rover as an SUV and described the other moving vehicle as a taxi.
The official record lists both drivers as licensed New York drivers and records each moving vehicle as going straight ahead before the crash.
Speed was recorded as a factor
The official vehicle record lists unsafe speed for the northbound Land Rover entry. A separate official person record for d'Antoine includes disregarded traffic control.
The Post, citing traffic summons data reviewed by Upper East Site, reported that the Land Rover had been cited for school-zone speeding five times in three years and that the taxi had received 13 school-zone speeding camera citations in less than two years.
York Avenue has a recent record of serious harm
The crash occurred at York Avenue and East 87th Street on the Upper East Side. CrashCountNYC's York Avenue corridor context for Manhattan counts 396 crashes, 158 injuries, 15 serious injuries and 5 deaths since 2022.
Police said the investigation was continuing
The Post reported on April 11 that the Land Rover driver remained at the scene and that the NYPD had made no arrest while the investigation continued.