FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, February 27, 2025
Brooklyn Man Sentenced to 3 to 9 Years in Prison for Running Red Light
and Killing Pedestrian While Speeding and Driving Drunk in Cobble Hill
Defendant Pleaded Guilty to Manslaughter for Fatal Crash
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez today announced that a Brooklyn man has been sentenced to 3 to 9 years in prison following his guilty plea to manslaughter after he sped through a red light while driving drunk in Cobble Hill, killing a 31-year-old who was crossing the street. Investigators subsequently determined the defendant was driving 72 m.p.h. with a blood-alcohol level more than twice the legal limit of .08.
District Attorney Gonzalez said, “This defendant made a disastrous decision when he got behind the wheel of a car while intoxicated. In doing so, he caused an innocent woman to be killed and endangered many others in Brooklyn that night. He has now been held accountable for his criminal conduct. I remain committed to keeping our borough’s streets safe for all people.”
The District Attorney identified the defendant as Erick Taxilaga Trujillo, 29, of Borough Park, Brooklyn. He was sentenced today by Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Christopher Robles to 3 to 9 years in prison. The defendant pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter on January 27, 2025.
The District Attorney said that, according to the evidence, on April 16, 2023, at approximately 9:56 p.m., the defendant was driving a 2012 Volvo S60 west on Atlantic Avenue at a high rate of speed when he ran a red light at the intersection of Clinton Street and struck a pedestrian, Katherine “Katie” Harris, 31, in the crosswalk. The defendant then rear-ended another car, causing both vehicles to crash into an outdoor dining shed.
Harris was pronounced dead at the scene.
Furthermore, according to the evidence, when police officers arrived, they observed the defendant had red eyes, slurred speech, and an odor of alcohol on his breath. The defendant was administered a blood test at Methodist Hospital, which showed the defendant had a blood alcohol level of .17, greater than the legal limit of .08.
Data from the black box of the defendant’s Volvo was recovered by the NYPD. According to the investigation, the box showed the defendant going 72 m.p.h. in the 25-m.p.h. zone.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Michael McGee Jr., of the District Attorney’s Blue Zone Trial Bureau and Assistant District Attorney Kaitlin Kinsella, also of the Blue Zone, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Kin Ng, Chief of the Blue Zone.
#