Defendant Was Driving Over 90 MPH When He Struck Victim; Drove Pickup Truck in Opposite Lane, Hit 13 Parked Cars
Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark announced that a Mount Vernon man has been sentenced to 5-10 years in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree Manslaughter for running over a Bronx woman with his pickup truck in the Soundview section of the Bronx.
District Attorney Clark said, “The defendant was recklessly speeding and under the influence when he hit the victim with his vehicle, killing her. Even after he ran over the victim, he continued to speed, driving into the opposite lane and over a bike path, and crashing into 13 parked cars. His reckless behavior ended the life of a beloved 31-year-old woman, who had just parked her car and was on her way to see her family.”
District Attorney Clark said the defendant, Robert Johnson, 43, of Mount Vernon, NY, was sentenced today by Bronx Supreme Court Justice Martin Marcus to 5-10 years in prison. The defendant pleaded guilty to second-degree Manslaughter and Operating a Motor Vehicle While Under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs on January 20, 2023.
According to the investigation, on September 28, 2021 at approximately 9:30 a.m., the defendant was driving his 2012 Dodge Ram at 90-95 miles per hour in the vicinity of East 174th Street and Bronx River Avenue, where the speed limit is 25 miles per hour. Johnson, who was on parole at the time, struck Carina Lopez, 31, who had just parked her car in the area. The defendant continued to drive at an excessive speed across double yellow lines into the opposite side of traffic, on a bike lane, and over a concrete center median, colliding with a total of 13 parked vehicles. The victim was taken to St. Barnabas Hospital where she was pronounced dead upon arrival. According to the investigation, Johnson was under the influence of a significant amount of cocaine.
District Attorney Clark also thanked NYPD Detective Peter Jarvis, formerly of the NYPD Collision Investigation Squad, and Detective Gregory Gianacopulos of the NYPD Collision Investigation Squad for their assistance in the investigation.
