Corey Henson was allegedly intoxicated when he struck and killed 30-year-old Dodanim Emanuel Chavez and fled the scene
MINEOLA, N.Y. – Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced that a Centereach man has been indicted on charges he struck and killed a 30-year-old man while driving drunk and fled the scene in July 2022.
Corey Henson, 32, was arraigned today before Judge Christopher Hoefenkrieg on charges of Manslaughter in the Second Degree (a C felony); Vehicular Manslaughter in the Second Degree (a D felony); Leaving the Scene of an Incident Resulting in Death (a D felony); Assault in the Second Degree (a D felony); and Driving While Intoxicated (an unclassified misdemeanor). The defendant pleaded not guilty, and bail was set at $25,000 cash, $50,000 bond, or $250,000 partially secured bond. The defendant’s license was also suspended. He is due back in court on June 1, 2023. If convicted, the defendant faces up to 7-1/3 to 22 years in prison.
“A 30-year-old man was moving his furniture when he was allegedly struck and killed by this intoxicated defendant,” DA Donnelly said. “Corey Henson allegedly fled the scene after killing Dodanim Emanuel Chavez and five miles later struck a guardrail in Freeport, which disabled his vehicle. He was apprehended the following day when he tried to retrieve his vehicle from the tow yard. Sadly, not all hit-and-run investigations end with a defendant in custody. However, through the collaborative efforts of my office, the Nassau County Police Department Homicide Squad, and the Freeport Police Department, we were able to retrace the defendant’s alleged movements and piece together the series of events that led to Mr. Chavez’s tragic death.”
DA Donnelly said that, according to the charges, on July 11, 2022, at approximately 9:07 p.m., 30-year-old Dodanim Emanuel Chavez was moving belongings from his home to a new home with the help of two friends. The victim was standing along the driver’s side of his friend’s pick-up truck on Long Beach Road in Island Park when he was allegedly struck by the defendant, who was driving southbound in his 2022 Ford Transit Connect. The defendant then allegedly fled the scene.
The victim suffered severe head trauma and was taken to Mount Sinai South Nassau Hospital where he was pronounced deceased.
After the collision, the defendant allegedly crashed his van into a guardrail on South Main Street in Freeport and the van was towed to a local yard. The following day, a Freeport police officer contacted the Nassau County Police Department about the van when he learned of the fatal hit-and-run collision in Island Park.
The defendant was arrested on July 13, 2022, by members of the NCPD and Freeport Police Department when he arrived at the tow yard to claim his van.
A subsequent investigation revealed that prior to the collision the defendant allegedly drank multiple alcoholic beverages over the course of two hours before driving his vehicle and was allegedly intoxicated when he struck the victim.
The case is being prosecuted by Deputy Bureau Chief Katie Zizza of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau. The defendant is represented by Robert Schalk, Esq.
The charges are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless found guilty.
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