People v. Newman

OPINION OF THE COURT

Frank J. LaBuda, J.

*362At 3:10 a.m. on a Sunday morning, after a night of consuming cocaine, marihuana and alcohol, the defendant Kenneth Newman and three of his friends1 left Kilcoin’s Bar in Swan Lake, New York, following a melee involving at least 30 people and a bottle being thrown at the defendant’s car breaking the lower driver’s side windshield with a loud “bang.” The defendant accelerated down the road, state Route 55, approximately 1,300 feet and struck a utility pole killing one passenger and seriously injuring two other passengers. According to witnesses who…