Woman Pleads Guilty in Saw Mill Parkway Wrong-Way Crash
A South Salem woman who caused a wrong-way crash on the Saw Mill Parkway last summer when her blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit pleaded guilty Wednesday to two charges stemming from that incident.
Tess Keegan, 22, was driving a 2010 Kia Forte a few minutes past midnight last Aug. 7, heading southbound in the northbound lanes. She collided with another vehicle, a 2008 Toyota Camry, on a stretch of the parkway in New Castle, according to the Westchester County district attorney’s office.
The crash pinned the man inside his car until he was extricated by the Pleasantville Fire Department. He survived the crash despite life threatening injuries.
The male driver was transported to the Westchester County Medical Center with a left femoral fracture, fractures to his ribs, back and toe, a lung contusion and a laceration to his head requiring nine staples to close the wound.
County police who responded to the scene noted that Keegan had no shoes on her feet, an odor of alcohol on her breath, glassy, bloodshot eyes and impaired coordination. She was arrested following the crash.
A subsequent analysis of Keegan’s blood revealed that she had a blood-alcohol content of .22 percent while operating her vehicle.
Keegan pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated vehicular assault, a Class C felony, and violating a section of the state vehicle and traffic law, an unclassified misdemeanor.
She is scheduled to be sentenced on June 1.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
