April 16, 2015 By Christian Murray
A 21-year-old East Elmhurst woman has been charged after she allegedly drove drunk and struck a pedestrian and several parked vehicles while in Astoria Tuesday.
Gisel Carchi, who lives on 81st Street, is currently awaiting arraignment in Queens Criminal Court on multiple charges—including first-and second-degree vehicular assault, leaving the scene of an incident and driving under the influence.
According to the complaint, the police were called to a traffic accident at the intersection of Vernon Blvd and 31st Drive just before 4 pm Tuesday, April 14. Carchi’s Nissan vehicle, according to a witness, allegedly hit a parked 2013 Ford vehicle and then struck 37-year old Yanni Arvanitopoulous while he was on the sidewalk.
Carchi allegedly then drove off.
The incident was caught on video tape, which showed Carchi’s Nissan hitting Arvanitopoulous while he was on the sidewalk. Allegedly she almost struck another pedestrian after swerving back onto the street, according to the district attorney’s office, which reviewed the tape.
Carchi stopped later in her journey after hitting two more parked cars. The police brought her to the Forest Hills 112 Precinct stationhouse and reported that she had a blood alcohol level of .201 percent, well above the .08 legal limit.
Carchi allegedly admitted that she had been drinking after she and a male friend had gone to a restaurant where they shared a bowl of an alcoholic drink.
“I guess I hit a car,” she reportedly said. “I didn’t even know I hit somebody.”
Arvanitopoulous had to be taken to an area hospital where he was diagnosed with paralysis of the left leg, a shattered right knee, broken right ankle and significant pain to his back and pelvis, which will require more testing.
If convicted, Carchi faces up to seven years in prison.
2 Comments
Dimitris, it is about being drunk. She did a horrible thing, awful, but it is not about female driving, it is about DRUNKEN driving. I hope the victim is recovering.
She and every ‘she’ should be driving period… why? because they don’t know how@!!@!!!