Wrong-Way Driver Fatally Hits Woman in West Village Crosswalk
Police charged Gary Levinson with criminally negligent homicide after they said he drove the wrong way from a Morton Street garage and hit 27-year-old Valerie Schoeck in a West Village crosswalk; the city record lists one pedestrian death.
What We Know
Valerie Schoeck, 27, was crossing Morton Street at Seventh Avenue South on the morning of Nov. 6, 2025, when police said Gary Levinson drove the wrong way after exiting a Morton Street garage and hit her in the crosswalk. Medics took Schoeck to Bellevue Hospital, where she died. The city crash record lists one pedestrian death and cites traffic-control disregard. Police later arrested Levinson and charged him with criminally negligent homicide and reckless driving.
A wrong-way turn out of a garage ended in the crosswalk
The crash happened around 8:34 a.m. on Nov. 6, 2025, at Morton Street and Seventh Avenue South. Police said Gary Levinson made a left turn after leaving a Morton Street parking garage, drove against traffic and hit Valerie Schoeck as she crossed in the crosswalk.
Medics took Schoeck to Bellevue Hospital, where police said she died about 40 minutes later. A witness who called 911 told the Daily News that she was on the ground having convulsions.
Why this West Village corner drew attention
The official record places the fatal crash at Morton Street and Seventh Avenue South in Manhattan, and CrashCountNYC location context identifies the site as Morton St & 7 Avenue S.
After Schoeck was killed, Council Member Erik Bottcher asked the Department of Transportation to review the intersection. Streetsblog reported that Morton Street is a narrow one-way street carrying drivers eastbound away from Seventh Avenue South, and Bottcher wrote that residents and business owners had reported recurring wrong-way driving, confusing traffic patterns, limited visibility and heavy pedestrian activity there.
Valerie Schoeck was 27 and planning a wedding
Press reports identified the pedestrian killed as Valerie Schoeck. Gothamist reported that she lived less than a mile from where she was killed; the Post described her as originally from Cambridge and living in the West Village.
The Daily News reported that Schoeck and her fiance, Ross Barlow, had planned to marry in June and honeymoon on safari. Gothamist reported that a GoFundMe created in her honor supported Our House, a grief-support nonprofit, and had collected more than $63,000.
Records and press reports describe the GMC differently
The city crash record lists a 2020 GMC categorized as a station wagon or sport utility vehicle, with one licensed male driver and a left-turn movement before the crash. Press reports described the GMC as a rented black Savana or Savanna van, and Streetsblog called it a cargo van.
Police tied the fatality to wrong-way driving
The city crash record cites traffic-control disregard as a contributing factor. Police told reporters that Levinson drove against the flow of traffic after leaving the garage; the Daily News reported that investigators believed he was trying to take a shortcut to Seventh Avenue South.
Police arrested Levinson in February 2026 and charged him with criminally negligent homicide and reckless driving. Gothamist reported that his lawyer said Levinson was arraigned and released on his own recognizance, and called it a horrible accident.
A city review followed the fatal collision
Streetsblog reported that DOT said it had commissioned a review under its standard procedure after a fatal collision. Bottcher’s letter urged the agency to address safety problems at the intersection and in the surrounding area.